Biochar application for greenhouse gas mitigation, contaminants immobilization and soil fertility enhancement: A state-of-the-art review.

Current research trends on emerging contaminants pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs): A comprehensive review.

One of the serious environmental concern around the world is heavy metals contamination. They can enter to the environment through human activities such as mining, farming, and factory activities. Soil contamination by heavy metals can affect crops, enter the food chain and threat human health. Therefore, clearance of the soil from these heavy metals is one of the most important environmental issues. Up to now, different strategies are introduced for heavy metals remediation of soil and some of them were briefly reviewed, here. We were mainly focus on the soil remediation from heavy metals which has the highest percentage of abundance in the contaminated soil, namely arsenic, lead, cadmium, nickel, mercury, iron, copper, and zinc by plants (phytoremediation). On the other hand, different kinds of plants, including trees, flowers, grasses, vegetables, and ferns that can help clean these metals from the soil, are introduced. Growth conditions of these plants, such as light and water, were also studied, and it was found that 48% plants require partial sunlight, and 50% of plants grew in moist soil. They were also classified based on their biological ages, and it was found 68% of plants were perennials and had more than two years of lifespan. Among these plants, some of them are capable of capturing several heavy metals simultaneously, and they are called as Valuable Phytoremediation Plants and they are more useful for soil remediation from heavy metals. It seems that present study can help environmental officials and governments to find a sustainable solution to get rid of heavy metals hazardous on mines ecosystem. 

Recent Progress on Sustainable Phytoremediation of Heavy Metals from Soil

Poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are synthetic chemicals, which reach terrestrial and aquatic environments through anthropogenic activities . Major sources of PFAS in the environment include fire-fighting foams (aqueous film forming foam (AFFF)), wastewater sources, biosolids , and composts. Limited information is available about PFAS in wastewater, which is the focus of this review. PFAS wastewater sources include domestic effluents, industrial effluents , landfill leachates, stormwater , and agricultural effluents through their use in various applications. Land application of PFAS-contaminated wastewater can lead to the contamination of soil and groundwater, thereby reaching the food chain through plant uptake and consumption of potable water . Landfill leachates and industrial effluents contain the highest concentrations of PFAS, posing serious risks to surrounding waterways. Transformation of PFAS precursors can occur through abiotic and biotic processes within the treatment of wastewater, resulting in the formation of harmful PFAS compounds. Currently, there is limited data reported on novel short-chain and ultra-short chain PFAS and PFAS precursors. The strong thermal and chemical stability of PFAS and the complex nature of PFAS mixtures makes the remediation of PFAS in wastewater challenging. However, the review examines and compares current technologies which can treat and remove PFAS from wastewaters. In this review, the distribution, transformation, and remediation of PFAS and their substitutes in wastewater sources are covered. 

Poonam Bhanse

Papers

Role of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria in boosting the phytoremediation of stressed soils: Opportunities, challenges, and prospects.