TY - JOUR
T1 - Coupling indigenous biostimulation and phytoremediation for the restoration of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene-contaminated sites
AU - Makris, Konstantinos C.
AU - Sarkar, Dibyendu
AU - Datta, Rupali
PY - 2010/2
Y1 - 2010/2
N2 - In-situ bioremediation has been highly promising in degrading nitroaromatics in soil, e.g., 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT). The case of TNT is examined here as a representative nitroaromatic compound that belongs to a suite of explosive residue types scattered throughout the European Union and other areas of the world. Differences in cost-effectiveness and TNT degradation rates between existing methods have spurred extensive debate in bioremediation research of explosive-contaminated sites. Rhizoremediation (plant inoculation with a specific microorganism), including genetic modification of plant/tree species, has been treated as the next best remediation method due to excellent performance in the lab. However, recent data collected in the field do not support the initial enthusiasm, showing in many cases, no statistical difference between (non-)transgenic rhizoremediation and phytoremediation (use of wild plant types). Obviously, the role of indigenous rhizospheric microorganisms has been underestimated, impeding our progress towards identifying the critical components of the optimum bioremediation scheme. Future research directions to enhance the indigenous microbial activity in the plant rhizosphere via addition of chemical amendments, such as, nutrients (fertilizers), and/or chaotropic agents (urea) could improve the overall efficiency of existing phytoremediation schemes.
AB - In-situ bioremediation has been highly promising in degrading nitroaromatics in soil, e.g., 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT). The case of TNT is examined here as a representative nitroaromatic compound that belongs to a suite of explosive residue types scattered throughout the European Union and other areas of the world. Differences in cost-effectiveness and TNT degradation rates between existing methods have spurred extensive debate in bioremediation research of explosive-contaminated sites. Rhizoremediation (plant inoculation with a specific microorganism), including genetic modification of plant/tree species, has been treated as the next best remediation method due to excellent performance in the lab. However, recent data collected in the field do not support the initial enthusiasm, showing in many cases, no statistical difference between (non-)transgenic rhizoremediation and phytoremediation (use of wild plant types). Obviously, the role of indigenous rhizospheric microorganisms has been underestimated, impeding our progress towards identifying the critical components of the optimum bioremediation scheme. Future research directions to enhance the indigenous microbial activity in the plant rhizosphere via addition of chemical amendments, such as, nutrients (fertilizers), and/or chaotropic agents (urea) could improve the overall efficiency of existing phytoremediation schemes.
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U2 - 10.1039/b908162c
DO - 10.1039/b908162c
M3 - Review article
C2 - 20145878
AN - SCOPUS:77951886966
SN - 1464-0325
VL - 12
SP - 399
EP - 403
JO - Journal of Environmental Monitoring
JF - Journal of Environmental Monitoring
IS - 2
ER -