Phytoremediation of Heavy Metals from Wastewater and Polluted Soil: Heavy Metals Accumulation In Some Vegetables

In most developing countries, there is dependence on wastewater for vegetable production due to limited access to clean water. Heavy metal pollution of aqueous streams, soil and sediments is a major environmental problem globally. Methods such as ion exchange, chemical and microbiological precipitation that have been developed to remove heavy metals have limited access due to the cost involved, labour and energy. This book, therefore unveils the phytoremediation potentials of Lactuca sativa, Brassica oleracea L. var capitata and Daucus carrota var sativa irrigated with wastewater from Nagodi mining site in Ghana. The concentration of heavy metals in the soil and the wastewater was also analysed. Differential accumulation and translocation of copper, lead, iron, manganese, cadmium and zinc in the root, stem and leaf of the vegetables were investigated during the experiment. This book should serve as a guide to environmentalists, scientists and all who may be interested in using plants for clean-up of toxic metals and also helps to understand the mechanisms plants uses to remove heavy metals from our environment in order to guarantee a greener and cleaner planet for all of us.