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Phytoremediation pp 143–156Cite as

Aquatic Macrophytes for the Removal of Heavy Metals from Coal Mining Effluent

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Abstract

Pollution of aquatic environment by heavy metals is currently of great concern. In the process of coal mining, huge amount of waste water is discharged on surface to facilitate mining operation. The discharged water often contains high load of TSS, TDS, hardness and heavy metals which contaminates surface and ground water. Present study gives a brief account of water pollution resulted due to coal mining effluent and removal of heavy metals from coal mining effluent. Among the different technologies used for the treatment of heavy metals, phytoremediation is one of the most important one which treats the metals with help of green plants. Several aquatic macrophytes have been used for heavy metal removal from various sources. Macrophytes Eichhornia crassipes, Spirodela polyrrhiza, Lemna minor, water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and small water fern (Azolla pinnata) have been proven very effective and safe in removing different heavy metals from coal mining effluent. Some of the studies have been reviewed here. Among different studies Eichhornia crassipes has been proved most efficient accumulator of heavy metals from coal mining effluent.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Science, Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, Amarkantak, MP, 484887, India

    Virendra Kumar Mishra & Reetika Shukla

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  1. Virendra Kumar Mishra
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  2. Reetika Shukla
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Correspondence to Virendra Kumar Mishra .

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Editors and Affiliations

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

    Abid Ali 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. College of Environmental Science, State University of New York, Syracuse, New York, USA

    Guy R. Lanza

  5. College of Environmental Science, State University of New York, Syracuse, New York, USA

    Lee Newman

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Mishra, V.K., Shukla, R. (2016). Aquatic Macrophytes for the Removal of Heavy Metals from Coal Mining Effluent. In: Ansari, A., Gill, S., Gill, R., Lanza, G., Newman, L. (eds) Phytoremediation. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-40148-5_5

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