Trends in Phytomanagement of Aquatic Ecosystems and Evaluation of Factors Affecting Removal of Inorganic Pollutants from Water Bodies

Abstract

The deterioration of water quality due to the increasing unsustainable developmental activities like production processes carried at high energy inputs, discharge of untreated municipal/industrial wastewater coupled with runoff from agricultural fields led to build up of toxic inorganic contaminants including heavy metals and Reactive Nitrogenous Species (RNS) into the water bodies. Intake of water contaminated with heavy metals and nitrogenous ions (nitrate, nitrite and ammonium) by humans and other life forms may lead to disruption of various metabolic activities, leading to cardiovascular, neurological, renal disorders. Different technologies and methods are being employed to remediate these pollutants from water. Phytoremediation is an economical, ecofriendly and aesthetically pleasing technology that makes the use of plant systems to remove and/or detoxify pollutants from the environment. The efficiency of the decontamination or remediation function of aquatic macrophytes depends on several factors like water physico-chemistry, plant physiology, plant genotype, sediment geochemistry and nature of contaminant or pollutant. Also water remediation by macrophytes can be significantly improved by appropriate selection of plant species which is built on the type of substances to be removed, the topography of the area, microclimate, hydrological conditions, accumulation capacities of the plant species etc. This write-up provides some insights in phytoremediation of inorganic pollutants and factors affecting their removal.