Pollution Control and Remediation of the Tanning Effluent

ABSTRACT

Recent advances have been recorded in the tanning industry with biotechnology in principle playing a very important role through related applied research. This review paper demonstrates that a previously tagged tanning sector as the most hazardous can be resolved through adoption of cleaner technologies, waste management and remedial measures that can be put in place. Pollution is depicted stepwise along the leather processing phases with a selected xenobiotic and contaminants identified such as Sodium chlorides, Chromium, Sulphates, Chlorinated phenolics etc. As an interventionist strategy, biological tools using novel techniques of investigation are shown including the aquatic ecosystems. Remedial methods using known threshold in an identified tannery in Kenya is used to comprehend how to scale down the pollutants eventually. However it is recognised that though phytoremediation potential exist, it will require a combination of several other recently developed methods to provide a much firmer basis of controlling pollution loads related to the tanning Industry.