title: An overview of the environmental applicability of vermicompost: from wastewater treatment to the development of sensitive analytical methods.
abstract: The use of vermicompost (humified material) for treating wastewaters, remediating polluted soils, improving agricultural productivity, protecting crop production, and developing sensitive analytical methods is reviewed here, covering the past 17 years. The main advantages of vermicompost, considering all applications covered in this paper, comprise (i) easy acquisition, (ii) low costs, (iii) structural, chemical, and biological characteristics responsible for exceptional adsorptive capacities as well as pollutant degradation, and (iv) the promotion of biocontrol. Specifically, for wastewater decontamination, a considerable number of works have verified the adsorption of toxic metals, but the application of vermicompost is still scarce for the retention of organic compounds. Problems related to the final disposal of enriched vermicompost (after treatment steps) are often found, in spite of some successful destinations such as organic fertilizer. For decontaminating soils, the use of vermicompost is quite scarce, mainly for inorganic pollutants. In agricultural productivity and biocontrol, vermicompost imparts remarkable benefits regarding soil aggregation, plant nutrition, and the development of beneficial microorganisms against phytopathogens. Finally, the use of vermicompost in sensitive analytical methods for quantifying toxic metals is the newest application of this adsorbent.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Madson de Godoi
authors.initials: Mde G
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lourdes Cardoso de Souza
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Neta
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Solos, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Avenida P. H. Rolphs, S/N, 36.570-000 Viçosa, MG, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maurício Paulo Ferreira
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Fontes
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Adriana Nascimento
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Thaionara Carvalho
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Matos
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Raquel de Lima
authors.initials: Rde L
authors.lastname: Sachdev
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Arnaud Victor
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: dos Santos
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marluce Oliveira
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: da Guarda Souza
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marta Valéria Almeida Santana
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: de Andrade
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Ciências Exatas e da Terra, Universidade do Estado da Bahia, Rua Silveira Martins, 2555, 41.150-000 Salvador, BA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gabriela Marinho Maciel
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Paulo
authors.affiliation: Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Avenida Maruípe, S/N, Maruípe, 29.042-751 Vitória, ES, Brazil.
authors.forename: Joselito Nardy
authors.initials: JN
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.affiliation: Coordenação de Licenciaturas, Instituto Federal de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia do Espírito Santo, Avenida Vitória, 1729, Jucutuquara, 29.040-780 Vitória, ES, Brazil.
authors.forename: Araceli Verónica Flores Nardy
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
mesh_terms: D000327:Adsorption; D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D000818:Animals; D061046:Biological Control Agents; D002623:Chemistry Techniques, Analytical / Q000379:methods*; D000077215:Clay; D005308:Fertilizers; D006812:Humic Substances / Q000032:analysis* / Q000592:standards / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D015394:Molecular Structure; D009835:Oligochaeta / Q000502:physiology; D016062:Porosity; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry; D062065:Wastewater / Q000737:chemistry*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D061046:Biological Control Agents; D000077215:Clay; D005308:Fertilizers; D006812:Humic Substances; D012987:Soil; D062065:Wastewater