To explore a novel strategy for the remediation of soils polluted with Cu and Cd, three strains of plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPRs) isolated from contaminated mines and two grass species (perennial ryegrass and tall fescue) were selected in this study. The performance of PGPR strains in metal adsorption, maintaining promotion traits under stress, and ameliorating phytostabilization potential was evaluated. Cd²⁺ exerted a stronger deleterious effect on microbial growth than Cu²⁺, but the opposite occurred for grass seedlings. Adsorption experiment showed that the growing PGPR strains were able to immobilize maximum 79.49% Cu and 81.35% Cd owing to biosorption or bioaccumulation. The strains exhibited the ability to secrete indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and dissolve phosphorus in the absence and presence of metals, and IAA production was even enhanced in the presence of low Cu²⁺ (5 mg L⁻¹). However, the siderophore-producing ability of the isolates was strongly suppressed under Cu and Cd exposure. Ryegrass was further selected for pot experiments owing to its higher germination rate and tolerance under Cu and Cd stress than fescue. Pot-experiment results revealed that PGPR addition significantly increased the shoot and root biomasses of ryegrass by 11.49%–44.50% and 43.53%–90.29% in soil co-contaminated with 800 mg Cu kg⁻¹ and 30 mg Cd kg⁻¹, respectively. Metal uptake and translocation in inoculated ryegrass significantly decreased owing to the reduced diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid-extractable metal content and increased residual metal-fraction percentage mediated by PGPR. Interestingly, stress mitigation was observed in these inoculated plants; in particular, their malondialdehyde content and superoxide dismutase activity were even significantly lower than those of ryegrass under normal conditions. Therefore, PGPR could be a promising option to enhance the phytostabilization efficiency of Cu and Cd in heavily polluted soils.

Sea level rise induced-salinization is lowering coastal soils productivity. In order to assess the effects that increased salinity may provoke in terrestrial plants, using as model species: Trifolium pratense, Lolium perenne, Festuca arundinacea and Vicia sativa, two specific objectives were targeted: i) to determine the sensitivity of the selected plant species to increased salinity (induced by seawater-SW or by NaCl, proposed as a surrogate of SW) and, ii) to assess the influence of salinization in total biomass under different agricultural practices (mono- or polycultures).The four plant species exhibited a higher sensitivity to NaCl than to SW. Festuca arundinacea was the most tolerant species to NaCl (EC₅₀,ₛₑₑd gₑᵣₘᵢₙₐₜᵢₒₙ and EC₅₀,gᵣₒwₜₕ of 18.6 and 10.5 mScm⁻¹, respectively). The other three species presented effective conductivities in the same order of magnitude and, in general, with 95% confidence limits overlapping. Soil moistened with SW caused no significant adverse effects on seed germination and growth of L. perenne. Similar to NaCl, the other three species, in general, presented a similar sensitivity to SW exposure with EC₅₀,ₛₑₑd gₑᵣₘᵢₙₐₜᵢₒₙ and EC₅₀,gᵣₒwₜₕ within the same order of magnitude and with confidence limits overlapping.The agricultural practice (mono-vs polyculture) showed some influence on the biomass of each plant species. When considering total productivity, for aerial and root biomass, it was higher in control comparatively to salinization conditions. Under salinization stress, the practice of polyculture was associated with a higher aerial and root total biomass than monocultures (for instance with combinations with T. pratense and F. arundinacea).Results suggest that the effects of salinity stress on total productivity may be minimized under agricultural practices of polyculture. Thus, this type of cultures should be encouraged in low-lying coastal ecosystems that are predicted to suffer from salinization caused by seawater intrusions.

Tools to predict environmental fate processes during remediation of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in soil are desperately needed since they can elucidate the overall behavior of the chemical and help to improve the remediation process. A dynamic multimedia fate model (SoilPlusVeg) was further developed and improved to account for rhizoremediation processes. The resulting model was used to predict Polychlorinated Biphenyl (PCB) fate in a highly contaminated agricultural field (1089 ng/g d.w.) treated with tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea), a promising plant species for the remediation of contaminated soils. The model simulations allowed to calculate the rhizoremediation time (about 90 years), given the available rhizoremediation half-lives and the levels and fingerprints of the PCB congeners, to reach the legal threshold, to show the relevance of the loss processes from soil (in order of importance: degradation, infiltration, volatilization, etc.) and their dependence on meteorological and environmental dynamics (temperature, rainfall, DOC concentrations). The simulations showed that the effective persistence of PCBs in soil is deeply influenced by the seasonal variability. The model also allowed to evaluate the role of DOC as a possible enhancer of PCB degradation as a microorganism “spoon feeder” of PCBs in the soil solution. Additionally, we preliminary predicted how the contribution of PCB metabolites could modify the PCB fingerprint and their final total concentrations. This shows that the SoilPlusVeg model could be used in selecting the best choices for a sustainable rhizoremediation of a POP contaminated site.

Cadmium (Cd) contamination of the soil is one of the most serious environmental problems of agricultural production. Phytoremediation has attracted increasing attention because it can safely remove the soil contaminates via plant uptake, accumulations and plant harvesting. However, the high Cd toxicity to plant tissues and treatment of the large amount of hazardous plant residues from phytoremediation have limited its commercial implementation. Here we show that the leaves of the tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) can excrete Cd out to avoid Cd toxicity in plant tissues. Cd specific fluorescence spectroscopy with laser confocal scanning microscope, screening electron microscope with energy dispersive spectroscopy and guttation fluids analysis confirmed that leaf hydathodes were the pathway of Cd excretion in tall fescue. Element analysis showed that Cd was preferentially excreted out when compared to the ion nutrients. The amount of leaf Cd excretion was linearly increased in response to the Cd stress period. The phytoremediation efficiency was evaluated to remove 14.4% of soil Cd annually by the leaf Cd excretion in our experimental system. These findings indicate that a novel strategy of Cd phytoexcretion based on washing-off and collection of leaf surface Cd is feasible to avoid Cd toxic in plant tissues and the high treatment cost of hazardous plant residues.

Surface water contamination can often be reduced by passing runoff water through perennial grass filters. Research was conducted in 2006 to 2008 to evaluate the size of cool season grass filters consisting primarily of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb) with some orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata L.) relative to drainage area size in reducing runoff sediment and phosphorus (P). The soil was Pohocco silt loam Typic Eutrochrepts with a median slope of 5.5 %. The grass filters occupying 1.1 and 4.3 % of the plot area were compared with no filter with four replications. The filters were planted in the V-shaped plot outlets which were 3.7 × 11.0 m in size. The filter effect on sediment and P concentration was determined from four natural runoff events when nearly all plots had runoff. Filter effect on runoff volume and contaminant load was determined using total runoff and composites of samples collected from 12 runoff events. Sediment concentration was reduced by 25 % with filters compared with no filter (from 1.10 to 1.47 g L⁻¹), but P concentration was not affected. The 1.1 and 4.3 % filters, respectively, compared with having no grass filter, reduced: runoff volume by 54 and 79 %; sediment load by 67 and 84 % (357 to 58 kg ha⁻¹); total P load by 68 and 76 % (0.58 to 0.14 kg ha⁻¹); particulate P (PP) load by 66 and 82 % (0.39 to 0.07 kg ha⁻¹); and dissolved reactive P (DRP) load by 73 and 66 % (0.2 to 0.07 kg ha⁻¹), respectfully. A snowmelt runoff event had 56 % greater DRP concentration compared with rainfall-induced runoff events. Grass filters reduced sediment and P load largely by reducing runoff volume rather than reducing concentration. Well-designed and well-placed grass filters that occupy 1.0 to 1.5 % of the drainage area and intercept a uniform flow of runoff from a drainage area can reduce sediment and nutrient loss in runoff by greater than 50 %.

Significant quantities of the broiler chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus) litter produced in the USA are being applied to pasture lands. The traditional surface- broadcast application of animal manure onto permanent pasture, however, may lead to high concentration of nutrients and pathogenic microorganisms near the soil surface that could be transported off site by runoff water. Subsurface banding of poultry litter has the potential to reduce nutrient and pathogen losses through runoff. However, this has not been thoroughly investigated. In this study, we used rainfall simulations to examine the effect of broiler litter application methods on the longevity of nutrient and Escherichia coli losses in runoff by successive runoff events. Runoff plots were constructed on Hartsells fine sandy loam (Typic Hapludults) soil with permanent Kentucky 31 tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) pasture in Crossville, AL. Treatments included two methods of litter application (surface broadcast and subsurface banding), commercial fertilizer, and control (no litter or fertilizer applied). To evaluate the longevity of nutrient losses, simulated rainfall (110 mm h⁻¹) was applied to each plot on days 1, 7, and 14 following litter and fertilizer applications. Total P (TP), inorganic N, and E. coli concentrations were all significantly greater in runoff from broadcast litter application than the subsurface litter banding treatments. The TP losses from broadcast litter applications averaged 6.5 times those from subsurface litter applications. About 81% of the runoff TP concentration was in the form of dissolved reactive phosphorus for both litter application methods. The average losses of NO₃-N and total suspended solids from subsurface litter banding plots were 358 g ha⁻¹ and 68 kg ha⁻¹ compared to 462 and 60 kg ha⁻¹ for the broadcast method, respectively. This study shows that subsurface banding of broiler litter into perennial grassland can substantially reduce nutrient and pathogen losses in runoff compared to the traditional surface-broadcast practice.

The remediation of wood preservative–contaminated sites is an important issue due to the carcinogenic nature of some contaminants derived from wood preservatives (e.g., Cr⁺⁶, arsenate, and pentachlorophenol). This study evaluated the effects of fertilizer application on remediation potential of co-plantings of Salix interior Rowlee. (Salix) and Festuca arundinacea Schreb. (Festuca) in a wood preservative–spiked technosol while considering the potential contaminant and nutrient leaching. Two levels of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilizers, NaNO₃ and NaH₂PO₄ (25 and 75 mg L⁻¹), were applied to achieve three N:P ratios, i.e., 3:1 (75:25), 1:3 (25:75), and 1:1 (25:25), that were compared with a control treatment (0:0 N:P) in a mesocosm experiment. Roots of the plant supplied with 1:1 and 1:3 N:P had more than double arsenic (As) and copper (Cu) amounts (i.e., biomass × concentration) compared to the control ones. Highest As and Cu amounts in shoots were found for Salix stems and Festuca leaves in the 1:3 and 1:1 N:P treatments, respectively. Arsenic and P leaching was high in mesocosms supplied with 1:3 N:P. Contamination and nutrient leaching in the 1:1 N:P treatment did not differ from the control, except for Cu. In conclusion, 1:1 N:P treatment yielded the best results in terms of metal(loid) uptake and contaminant and nutrient leaching. In 1:1 N:P treatment, the maximum values of percent As, Cr, and Cu in Salix and Festuca aboveground were 0.18%, 0.024%, and 1.20% and 0.89%, 0.08%, and 1.78%, respectively.