Objectives and Activities of the section


The EFB section on Environmental Biotechnology is active in the following fields: a) biomonitoring and bioremediation of xenobiotic compounds occurring in soils, sediments, groundwater and wastewaters; b) the clean up and sanitation of water; c) integrated disposal and valorization (biorefinery concept) of by-products, wastes, effluents and surplus of the agro-food industry with the production of bio-based chemicals, materials and fuels; d) CO2 biocapture, etc.. Environmental biotechnology is mainly based on the tailored exploitation of enzymatic and microbial processes already occurring in the treated environmental matrices or established in bioreactors with dedicated configurations and working operations.


Environmental Biotechnology provides effective and sustainable (from the economical, environmental and social point of view) tools and strategies for a) monitoring and reducing the risk to humans from contaminated sites and from the storage of municipal and industrial (bio)wastes; b) cleaning up and enabling the reuse of industrial wastewater (thus reducing the industrial use of natural water); c) turning biowaste with high environmental impact into biobased, biodegradable and biocompatible chemicals, materials and fuels, with a remarkable reduction of i) human risks associated with the biowaste disposal, ii) use of polluting fossil fuels or food crops for producing chemicals and fuels, and iii) CO2 production and climate change impacts.


Environmental Biotechnology has a broad application potential in a variety of industries such as those involved in the sustainable remediation of sites and wastewaters and the innovative chemical and energetic valorization of biowastes but also, considering the possible end users of the bio-based products resulting from the biowaste biorefineries, in the chemical, textile, and agro-industry as well as in the energy sector.


The EFB Section on Environmental Biotechnology is led by a scientific committee consisting of about 50 members coming from academia, research centers, governmental institutions and industries from European countries. Individual scientists with an interest in Environmental Biotechnology are encouraged to become members so that they can actively participate in the activities of the section and support the development of Environmental Biotechnology in Europe.

The mission of the section can be summarized as follows:

• To develop the science and engineering aspects of modern environmental biotechnology;
• To identify the most prominent European R&D priorities and stakeholder needs in the area of sustainable bioremediation of contaminated sites and wastewaters, biowaste biorefining, water sanitation, CO2 fixation, etc.;
• To promote such priorities and needs towards the European Commission, the OECD, the European Technology Platforms and other European Agencies dealing with environmental protection and restoration;
• To promote international conferences on Environmental Biotechnology in Europe and partner Countries;
• To promote Environmental Biotechnology in the national science policies of European Countries.