Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Eco-Friendly Technologies
for Heavy Metal Remediation:
Pragmatic Approaches
Hemambika Balakrishnan and Rajeshkannan Velu
Abstract
Heavy metal contamination is a universal problem that disrupts the
environment as a consequence of several anthropogenic activities. This
chapter provides a review on the remediation technologies of heavy metal
contamination. The modern remediation techniques of heavy metal from
the contaminated soil and water are expensive and environmentally
destructive. Unlike organic compounds, metals cannot degrade, and so
effi cient cleanup involves their immobilization to reduce or remove toxic-
ity. The use of plants and associated microorganisms are gaining more
attention to remove, immobile or degrade the environmental destructive
contaminants. Phytoremediation is an emerging technology for cleaning
up contaminated sites, which is cost effective, and has aesthetic advan-
tages and long-term applicability. Furthermore, the metal-resistant bacte-
ria are reported to play an important role in phytoremediation for successful
survival and growth of plants. Moreover, the metal-resistant bacteria are
reported to promote plant growth by various mechanisms such as nitrogen
fi xation, solubilization of minerals, production of phytohormones and
siderophores, and utilization of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid
as a sole N source and transformation of nutrient elements. A brief review
on phytoremediation of heavy metals and its effect on plants has been
compiled to provide a wide applicability of phytoremediation.
Keywords
Heavy metals • Phytoremediation • Nitrogen fi xation • Phytohormones •
Siderophores
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