Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
In. addition. to. the. huge. expenditure. in. treating. and. curing. the. workers.
and.local.residents.who.have.suffered.from.acute.and.chronic.toxicity.due.
to.their.immediate.environment,.remediation.of.the.contaminated.sites.with.
mixed.pollutants.will.be.extremely.dificult.
TheNeedtoRemediateContaminatedSites
It.is.recognized.that.mineral.exploitation.including.(1).metals,.(2).industrial.
minerals.(such.as.lime.or.soda.ash),.(3).construction.materials,.and.(4).energy.
minerals.(i.e.,.coal,.natural.gas,.oil,.etc.).has.been.a.major.cause.of.land.dam-
age.in.China,.imposing.adverse.effects.on.the.local.ecosystems.and.inhab-
itants. (including. human. beings),. and. through. the. release. of. heavy. metals.
and.organic.pollutants.(notably.oil),.underground.and.nearby.farmland.and.
ishponds.will.also.be.affected.(Wong.and.Bradshaw.2002a)..Other.industrial.
activities.such.as.air.emissions.from.power.plants.and.incinerators,.uncon-
trolled. discharges. of. different. types. of. industrial. efluents,. and. the. use. of.
contaminated.irrigation.water.are.potential.sources.of.soil.pollution.
Remediation. of. sites. contaminated. with. different. environmental. pollut-
ants,.including.heavy.metal/metalloids.(such.as.Cu,.Pb,.and.Zn).and.POPs.
(such.as.PAHs.and.DDT),.is.essential.to. avoid.spreading.of.pollutants.that.
may.have.adverse.impacts.on.plants,.animals,.and.human.beings.and.restore.
the.ecosystems.by.establishing.soil.and.associated.plant,.animal,.and.micro-
bial.communities.(Wong.and.Bradshaw.2002b).
Bioremediation of Contaminated Sites
Bioremediation. refers. to. the. use. of. microbes. (i.e.,. bacteria. and. fungi). for.
degrading. POPs. (such. as. PAHs. and. DDT),. and. it. has. become. an. effective.
and.low-cost.technology.for.cleaning.up.sites.contaminated.by.these.organic.
contaminants..This.can.be.achieved.by.isolating.and.subsequently.enhanc-
ing. the. growth. of. indigenous. microbes. through. provision. of. nutrients,.
carbon.sources,.or.electron.donors,.either.
in situ
.(e.g.,.bioventing,.biosparg-
ing,.biostimulation,.and.some.composting.methods).or.
ex situ
.(e.g.,.bioreac-
tors,. bioilters,. land. farming,. and. some. composting. methods).. The. former.
is.more.attractive.because.it.requires.less.equipment.and.is.therefore.more.
cost-effective,. and. causes. less. disturbance. to. the. immediate. environment.
(Diaz.2008).
Phytoremediation of Contaminated Sites
Phytoremediation.is.an.emerging.green.technology.that.involves.the.use.of.
green. plants. to. decontaminate. different. pollutants. from. soils/waters.. For.
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