Scientists from the University of California’s environmental toxicology department have found that certain native plants and species of fungi can help clean up toxic land that has had to be abandoned due to pollution.
With nearly half a million of these “brownfields” registered in the United States alone, soil contamination is rapidly becoming a major cause for concern, not least because brownfields are typically located in lower income areas and increase the probability of serious conditions, like cancer.
The researchers planted native shrubs, bushes and fungi at three contaminated sites, then monitored how efficiently they sucked up soil pollution over the course of a year. The team found that the top detoxifying plants were telegraph weed, California buckwheat and mulefat – helping to cause significant reductions in heavy metals like lead, arsenic and copper across all three sites!
Source – The Guardian
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/14/native-plants-fungi-soil-bioremediation