PERMACULTURE: Phytoremediation - What could be left on Brown Field Sites?
What is Phytoremediation?
Phytoremediation consists in depolluting contaminated soils, water or air with plants able to contain, degrade or eliminate metals, pesticides, solvents, explosives, crude oil and its derivatives, and various other contaminants, from the mediums that contain them. It is clean, efficient, inexpensive and non-environmentally disruptive, as opposed to processes that require excavation of soil (Source: Wikapedia).
I am not science based please help. Simple language is best
Answer:
There are many plants being used for this depending on their tolerance for living with pollutants. These plants absorbe different levels of metals, and other substances, depending on their species. I am looking after a good site with your information. :)
I know that Lead (Pb), Chromium (Cr), Nickel (Ni), Selenium (Se), Zinc (Zn), Mercury (Hg), and Cadmium (Cd), can be absorbed. These elements are expected to be extractable with research: As, Cu, Cs, Sr, U.
So called hyperaccumulators -plants that are exceptionally good at absorbing pollutants - are preferred and are required to be resistant towards the elements in question.
Some substances are targeted by researchers in their attempts to locate the right species and enhance its ability. They look for hyperaccumulators, that are also resistant to the substance. I haven't seen any limitations as to what elements these plants are capable of absorbing, rather an interest geared towards specific pollutants.
Sorry I couldn't be of more help..
Dont know about soil, although many plants will remove dangerous metals from the earth and it goes into the building of the leaves
However landfills are deep and plants have limits ,these places can be toxic for many thousands of years if not longer
Polution being leached into subteranean water supplies forever as we are concerned .
We are trying to make a gardening operation below what was Acapulco´s Dump 6 years ago and at times there are still dead fish way below in the streams
I have used water hyacynth and other aquaric plants (with their leaves out and above the water) to clean small contaminated ponds ,with great succes
Sorry but that is the exstent of my experiance.
the permaculture answer will be to watch the site for a year to see what grows - ie what is tollerant or thrives in the particular situation.
the answer will depend on what the site has been used for and what the local climate is; water run-off/solubility of contaminant etc.
probably the best information will be the industry body that has done the specific polluting, especially if there are still local people with the experience.
often the most effective solution will be micro-organisms rather than plants alone
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