Phytoremediation in engineered wetlands: Mechanisms and applications

Abstract

Engineered wetland phytoremediation is an aesthetically pleasing, solar-driven, passive technique useful for cleaning up wastes including metals, pesticides, crude oil, polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and landfill leachates and has become an increasingly recognized pathway to advance the treatment capacity of wetland systems. This review addresses the mechanisms of phytoremediation in engineering wetland systems when reducing loads of various contaminants, as well as the application of phytoremediation as an environmentally sound technology in engineered wetland systems in both laboratory and field levels, followed by a case study of full scale application in Newfoundland, Canada. The review is expected to help add more capacity to understand phytoremediation in engineered wetland systems, and establish an effective framework for further applications. © 2010 Published by Elsevier Ltd.