PHYTOREMEDIATION

Phytoremediation describes the treatment of environmental problems (bioremediation) through the use of plants which mitigate the environmental problem without the need to excavate the contaminant material and dispose of it elsewhere.

The word's etymology comes from the GreekPhytoremediation consists in mitigating pollutant concentrations in 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 media that contain them

Various phytoremediation processes

A range of processes mediated by plants or algae are useful in treating environmental problems:

Phytoextraction - uptake and concentration of substances from the environment into the plant biomass.

Phytostabilization - reducing the mobility of substances in the environment, for example by limiting the leaching of substances from the soil.

Phytotransformation - chemical modification of environmental substances as a direct result of plant metabolism, often resulting in their inactivation, degradation (phytodegradation) or immobilization (phytostabilization).

Phytostimulation - enhancement of soil microbial activity for the degradation of contaminants, typically by organisms that associate with roots. This process is also known as rhizosphere degradation. Phytostimulation can also involve aquatic plants supporting active populations of microbial degraders, as in the stimulation of atrazine degradation by hornwort.

Phytovolatilization - removal of substances from soil or water with release into the air, sometimes as a result of phytotransformation to more volatile and / or less polluting substances.

Rhizofiltration - filtering water through a mass of roots to remove toxic substances or excess nutrients. The pollutants remain absorbed in or adsorbed to the roots.