ABSTRACT
Industrial waste management is the major thrust area of research in the world, as these wastes contain a variety of organic, inorganic, and organometallic complex pollutants that cause serious environmental hassle. Molasses-based distilleries and fermentation industries are the most common polluting industries worldwide, generating a large volume of high-strength colored wastewater, called as spent wash, or raw effluent, as well as solid sludge, containing high inorganic, organic, organometallic, and various refractory compounds. Anaerobic digestion of spent wash followed by aerobic treatment is the common practice in the distilleries to treat spent wash and has often been cited as an efficient treatment option because it eliminates the biochemical oxygen demand. Melanoidin, a major colorant of distillery waste, is one of the end products of the Maillard reaction and its inherent recalcitrant nature poses hurdles in subsequent effluent treatment. This chapter aims to provide a comprehensive review of the wastes generated from distilleries, their toxicity profile, environmental impacts, and various physicochemical and bioremediation approaches for their safe disposal into the environment.
