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Assessing the Potential of Phytoremediation at a Site in the U.K. Contaminated with 137Cs

Mudiganti, Arun; Willey, Neil; Hall, Sue; Mudigantia, Arun

Authors

Arun Mudiganti

Neil Willey Neil.Willey@uwe.ac.uk
Professor in Env Plant Physiology

Sue Hall

Arun Mudigantia



Abstract

Spinacia oleracea L. cv. 'Bloomsdale', Beta vulgaris L. cv. 'Flavescens', Brassica juncea L. 'OB825', and Helianthus annuus L. cv. 'Oranges and Lemons' were grown for 8 weeks at a site contaminated with 137Cs at Bradwell Nuclear Power Station, UK. The site was a trench approximately 1.5 m deep, 2 m wide, and 100 m long in 'made ground' consisting of alluvium with traces of illites, kaolinites, and smectites. 137Cs activity concentration was measured in individual plants after 8 weeks growth and the soil in which they grew. The biomass produced and total 137Cs removed to shoots differed significantly between species but 137Cs activity concentrations and Transfer Factors (TFs) did not. B. vulgaris produced the most biomass and removed the greatest amount of 137Cs. For all plants, and within each taxon, plants growing at low soil 137Cs activity concentrations had significantly greater TFs than those growing at high soil 137Cs activity concentrations. It is concluded that selecting plant taxa suited to a particular site can be an effective way of improving phytoremediation rates, that there is much scope for adjusting harvesting intervals to 8 weeks or less without affecting TFs, and that estimates of time taken for 137Cs removal by phytoremediation should consider that TFs may increase as soil concentrations decrease. With refinements in methodology, phytoremediation has the potential to contribute significantly to decontamination of the site at Bradwell.

Citation

Mudiganti, A., Willey, N., Hall, S., & Mudigantia, A. (2001). Assessing the Potential of Phytoremediation at a Site in the U.K. Contaminated with 137Cs. International Journal of Phytoremediation, 3(3), 321-333. https://doi.org/10.1080/15226510108500062

Journal Article Type Article
Publication Date Jan 1, 2001
Deposit Date Apr 4, 2013
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal International Journal of Phytoremediation
Print ISSN 1522-6514
Publisher Taylor & Francis
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 3
Issue 3
Pages 321-333
DOI https://doi.org/10.1080/15226510108500062
Public URL https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/1092188
Publisher URL http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15226510108500062