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Plant Response to Metal Contamination at an Oil Shale Tailing Site in Maoming, South China
Author(s) -
Ding Aizhong,
Cheng Lirong,
Liu Puxin,
Carpenter Philip J.,
Teng Yanguo
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
groundwater monitoring and remediation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 47
eISSN - 1745-6592
pISSN - 1069-3629
DOI - 10.1111/j.1745-6592.2007.00155.x
Subject(s) - hyperaccumulator , phytoremediation , environmental remediation , environmental science , soil contamination , oil shale , phytoextraction process , contamination , heavy metals , tailings , shoot , environmental chemistry , agronomy , soil water , waste management , chemistry , biology , ecology , soil science , engineering
The performance of phytoextraction is evaluated at an oil shale tailing site in South China, where the soil is moderately contaminated with heavy metals. Soil, wastes, and plant tissues (leaf, stem, and root) were collected from the site and analyzed for metals. The analytical results show that the plants can extract more metal from the surrounding soil than their nutrient requirements. Though the plants sampled are not hyperaccumulators for heavy metals as defined by other researchers, they can translocate heavy metals to their leaves and tolerate acidic soil with pH as low as 3.4. This makes them candidates for contaminated site remediation. Abelmoschus moschatus , Eleocharis quisetina J. et C.Presl , Acacia confusa wild. , and Eucalyptus saligna were particularly effective in translocating heavy metals to easily harvestable leaves and shoots.