Phytoremediation: An Ecotechnology for Treating Contaminated Sites

Phytoremediation is an ecotechnological remediation for treating contaminated sites. This phytotechnology uses plants to degrade, transform, assimilate, metabolize, or detoxify hazardous pollutants from soil and aquatic and atmospheric environments. Phytoremediation is generally used as a final polishing step following the pretreatment of the high concentrations of contaminants, while it can be used alone for low-level contamination, which may be the most economical and effective remediation strategy. Phytoremediation can be used for treating many classes of contaminants including petroleum hydrocarbons, chlorinated organic compounds, pesticides, explosives, heavy metals and radionuclides, and salts existing in industrial wastes, oil spills, forestry and agricultural wastes, salty waste liquid, and landfill leachate, which may contaminate surface water, groundwater, sediments, and soils. Although phytoremediation is a complicated process to remove contaminants from different environments and still need to keep investigating its mechanisms, it is an efficient, economical, and environmentally friendly ecotechnology. As a result of these advantages, phytoremediation has considerable potential for environmental restoration of contaminated sites.