Abstract
The increasing production of wastes that are landfilled might contribute to sources of potentially toxic elements; this is the case of residual red gypsum tailings, a by-product of titanium dioxide extraction. Revegetation of such a site is essential, and Mn phytoextraction may render the operations economically profitable. This study aimed to apply phytomanagement techniques for increasing the plant development, tailings revegetation and an optimal Mn phytoextraction using silver birch, the most abundant plant species on this site. To enhance the nutrient availability from the tailings, amendments that reduce the pH, i.e., pine bark chips, Miscanthus straw, white peat, and ericaceous compost, were mixed with residual red gypsum and birches were allowed to grow for 3 months. The pine bark chips and ericaceous compost led to a maximum decrease in pH, allowing the accumulation of up to 1400 mg Mn kg(-1) dry matter in the leaves silver birch leaves. However, some nutrient competition was found in the pine bark treatment, which halved biomass production as compared to control. Further amendment addition may be needed to take advantage of the pine bark capabilities as a soil conditioner and Mn solubilizing treatment in residual red gypsum.
Highlights
The global population surpassed 7 billion inhabitants by January 2016, increasing concerns about food security, climate change, public health, resource extraction, and waste recycling (Abdulkadyrova et al, 2016)
The differences remained similar during the experiment, with the highest pH observed for the used as a control treatment (Unt) soil, followed by the white peat (Wp), ericaceous compost (Ec), and Miscanthus straw (Ms) soils, and the lowest pH being in the pine bark chips (Pc) soil
Mn solubility significantly increased in the Pc, Ec, and Wp soils
Summary
The global population surpassed 7 billion inhabitants by January 2016, increasing concerns about food security, climate change, public health, resource extraction, and waste recycling (Abdulkadyrova et al, 2016). Waste generation and its management is currently of major importance (European Commission [EC], 2015). Total waste production includes waste produced in manufacturing, mineral extraction, and households, with some of these main waste sources in Europe reaching up to 2500 million tons (Eurostat, 2016) and becoming landfill waste. The number of potentially contaminated sites in Europe is as high as 3 million (EEA, 2007), and this number could eventually increase with the increase in the population and industry. Industrial landfills may contain mine slags and tailings that generally contain potentially toxic elements (PTEs) that affect organisms differently (KurtKarakus, 2012). The urbanization near landfill areas may increase population exposure to PTEs by dust inhalation, ingestion of home-grown vegetables (Assad et al, 2019), and
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