Environmental Microbiology has been challenging in that although many exciting new areas have emerged, the fundamentals of the field remain as important foundations. Great strides have been made in expanding our knowledge in the areas of genetics, evolution, and diversity and yet we still do not have a clear idea of how this knowledge can be integrated into understanding and controlling microorganisms in the environment or even how to culture many microbes. We remind the reader that while the roots of environmental microbiology are perhaps most closely related to the field of microbial ecology, which comprises the study of the interaction of microorganisms within an environment, be it air, water, or soil, the primary difference between these two fields is that environmental microbiology is an applied field in which the driving question is, Because environmental microbes can affect so many aspects of life, and are easily transported between environments, the field of environmental microbiology interfaces with a number of different subspecialties, including soil, aquatic, and aero microbiology, as well as bioremediation, water quality, occupational health and infection control, food safety, and industrial microbiology
