This fully updated new edition offers an authoritative and comprehensive exploration of microbial communities in environments that are rich in hydrocarbons, crude oil or lipids. It encompasses natural sources, such as tar sands, oil seeps and reservoirs, and habitats where methane is produced, as well as synthetic hydrocarbon-based materials like refined fuels and plastics. The impact of human activity in contaminated soils, aquifers, shorelines, and marine ecosystems is comprehensively analysed. The book opens with a series of chapters considering contemporary approaches used to investigate microbial communities, including advanced metagenomic and metatranscriptomic techniques, single-cell analyses, and stable isotope probing methods. Subsequent sections delve into specific habitats and microbial groups, examining the structure and function of microbial communities within these contexts, pursuing in some cases novel biotechnological applications.