Application of Organic Amendment from Kitchen Waste Composting for Enhanced Bioremediation of Petroleum Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Soil

Bioremediation of total petroleum hydrocarbon (TPH) in contaminated soil is an environmentally friendly and inexpensive method, but the low rate of bioremediation is an important factor limiting its development. As one kind of urban garbage classification, the resource utilization of kitchen waste is the focus of attention. In this study, the effect of the organic amendment (OA) from kitchen waste composting on TPH removal efficiency in soil without or with petroleum hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria (PHDB) was investigated. After 35 days of soil remediation, TPH removal efficiency were 37.2 ± 1.2% and 51.9 ± 0.9% in OA group (without PHDB) and OA-DB group (with PHDB). Furthermore, TPH removal efficiency in OA group and OA-DB group with 50 g/kg OA can reach 72.8 ± 1.1% and 78.3 ± 0.3%. The half-life decreased from 52.5 d to 17.5 d for OA group and from 31.4 to 15.3 d for OA-DB group. The addition of OA can improve the degradation efficiency for long-chain hydrocarbons (C16–C23) and heavy fraction (C24-C39), as OA can maintenance of high dehydrogenase, urease and catalase activity in TPH contaminated soil. The compost products of kitchen waste can increase the rate of bioremediation of TPH in soil, this provides a new idea for the utilization of kitchen waste as a soil remediation agent.