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Phytoremediation pp 323–331Cite as

Salt Marsh Plants’ Potential for the Remediation of Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Environments

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Abstract

Petroleum contamination can cause serious damage to ecosystems, and natural biological processes may be convenient alternatives to minimise ecological impacts. However, these are long processes, and approaches to accelerate them are needed. In this chapter two studies carried out to ascertain the phytoremediation potential of salt marsh plants for the remediation of hydrocarbon-contaminated environments in near-natural controlled conditions are reported. In the first study, the suitability of Juncus maritimus and Phragmites australis for rhizodegradation of petroleum hydrocarbon-contaminated estuarine sediment, the medium where the plants grow, was assessed. The second study involved soil contaminated with petrochemical products and evaluated the capability of Halimione portulacoides, Juncus maritimus and Scirpus maritimus for soil remediation. Results indicate that salt marsh plants, or salt-tolerant marsh plants, can have an important role in the restoration and remediation of not only hydrocarbon-contaminated sediments but also hydrocarbon-contaminated nonsaline soils. However, the specificities of the plant species, the environmental conditions and the time frame should be well thought out when engaging a revegetation of hydrocarbon-polluted sites with these plants.

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Acknowledgements

 To FEDER funds through Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade – COMPETE and to Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT, Portugal) under PesT-C/MAR/LA0015/2011, PTDC/MAR/099140/2008 and REEQ/304/QUI/2005 and PhD scholarships of HR (SFRH/BD/47631/2008) and NC (SFRH/31816/2006) cofinanced by POPH/FSE. To Refinaria do Porto (GALP Energia) for financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CIMAR/CIIMAR—Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Universidade do Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123, Porto, Portugal

    C. Marisa R. Almeida, Nazaré Couto Ph.D., Hugo Ribeiro Ph.D., Ana Paula Mucha Ph.D., Adriano Bordalo Ph.D. & M. Teresa S. D. Vasconcelos Ph.D.

  2. CENSE, Departamento de Ciências e Engenharia do Ambiente, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Caparica, Portugal

    Nazaré Couto Ph.D.

  3. Laboratório de Hidrobiologia, Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas, Universidade do Porto (ICBAS-UP), R. Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313, Porto, Portugal

    Hugo Ribeiro Ph.D. & Adriano Bordalo Ph.D.

  4. CIMAR/CIIMAR and Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, s/n, 4169-007, Porto, Portugal

    M. Clara Basto Ph.D.

Authors
  1. C. Marisa R. Almeida
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  2. Nazaré Couto Ph.D.
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  3. Hugo Ribeiro Ph.D.
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  4. Ana Paula Mucha Ph.D.
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  5. Adriano Bordalo Ph.D.
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  6. M. Clara Basto Ph.D.
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  7. M. Teresa S. D. Vasconcelos Ph.D.
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to C. Marisa R. Almeida .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

    Abid A. Ansari

  2. Centre for Biotechnology, MD University, Rohtak, Haryana, India

    Sarvajeet Singh Gill

  3. Centre for Biotechnology, MD University, Rohtak, Haryana, India

    Ritu Gill

  4. Aquatic Ecology and Microbiology, Department of Environmental and Forest Biology, SUNY - College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, New York, USA

    Guy R. Lanza

  5. Biotechnology and Phytoremediation, Department of Environmental and Forest Biology, SUNY - College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, New York, USA

    Lee Newman

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Almeida, C.M.R. et al. (2015). Salt Marsh Plants’ Potential for the Remediation of Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Environments. In: Ansari, A., Gill, S., Gill, R., Lanza, G., Newman, L. (eds) Phytoremediation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-10395-2_23

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