Phytoremediation potential of willow herb and reed canary grass under conditions of polyelemental pollution
L.M. Shaposhnikova, O.V. Raskosha, N.G. Rachkova
Section: Remediation and rehabilitation
We investigated elemental composition of alluvial-sod soil, which was polluted by spilling radium enriched highly mineralized ground waters (Komi Republic) in 1930–1950s. It was revealed that content of more than 20 chemical elements, including U and 226Ra, some essential and potentially toxic elements, was higher compared to uncontaminated background. Accumulation of these elements in canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) and willow herb (Chamaenerion angustifolium (L.) Scop.) was estimated by bioconcentration factor (BCF) equal to the ratio of the concentrations of chemical elements in the aboveground parts of plants and soils, as well as root barrier factor (RBF), equal to the ratio of the concentration of elements in the underground and aboveground parts of plants. The highest BCFs were more than 11 for potassium in both species and 3.7 and 10.5 for phosphorus in canary grass and willow herb, respectively. BCF for copper in both cases were close to 1. BCFs for Mg, Ca, Zn, Na, Mn and Sr ranged from 0.06 to 0.37. The minimal BCFs (< 0.03) were observed in the case of 226Ra for canary grass and U, Fe, Ba, V, Al, and Pb for both plant species. Transfer from roots to aboveground parts of plants was highest for essential elements K, P, Mg, and Ca (RBF < 1). RBFs of Zn and Cu were < 1 in case of willow herb and > 1 for canary grass. Roots of both plant species accumulated U, 226Ra, Pb, V, As, Al, Fe, Na, Ba, and Sr in higher concentrations than aboveground parts. The obtained data suggests that both plants contribute to decrease in bioavailability of pollutants due to root barrier that reduces the migration of potentially toxic elements from soil to plants and can be potential phytostabilizers for these pollutants. In the case of canary grass, root barrier function observed to greater extent.
ISSN 1995-4301
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