Biodegradation of soil‐applied endosulfan in the presence of a biosurfactant

Abstract

Abstract Biodegradation of endosulfan isomers in soil‐applied and flask‐coated conditions was studied, by an isolated bacterial coculture. The degradation in soil‐applied form was 20–30% slower than in flask‐coated condition. Addition of a biosurfactant, isolated from Bacillus subtilis MTCC 1427, enhanced the rate of biodegradation by 30–45% in both the conditions. It also mobilized the residual endosulfan towards biodegradation, that otherwise remains undegraded.