Metal partitioning in plant–substrate–water compartments under EDDS-assisted phytoextraction of pyrite waste with Brassica carinata A. Braun

Soil amendment with chelating agents can increase metal uptake and translocation in biomass species through increased metal bioavailability together with possible increases in metal leaching. In this study, we assessed the efficiency and environmental risk of the fast-degradable [S,S]-EDDS. Cu, Pb and Zn uptake in pot-cultivated Brassica carinata A. Braun, residual substrate metal bioavailability and leaching were investigated after one cycle of EDDS-assisted phytoextraction in mixed metal-contaminated pyrite waste, which is characterised by high Fe content. The chelator was supplied at doses of 2.5 and 5 mmol EDDS kg⁻¹waste 1 week before harvest and 1 mmol EDDS kg⁻¹waste repeated five times at 5- and 10-day intervals during the growing cycle. Here we demonstrate that EDDS generally increases shoot metal concentrations—especially of Cu—but only seldom improves removals because of markedly impaired growth. Considerable phytotoxicity and Cu leaching occurred under repeated EDDS treatments, although environmental risks may also arise from the single, close-to-harvest applications as Cu bioavailability in waste at plant harvest still remained very high (up to +67 % at 5 mmol EDDS kg⁻¹vs. untreated controls). The residual bioavailability of Zn and Pb was instead generally reduced, perhaps due to shifts in cation exchange, whereas Fe mobility was not apparently affected. The amount of metals removed by plants represented a small fraction of the bioavailable pool (<1 %), and mobilised metals quickly reached deep layers in the substrate. We conclude that EDDS assistance can provide only some limited opportunities for improving phytoremediation of pyrite waste, major benefits being achieved by low doses to be traditionally applied shortly before harvest, with due attention to limiting groundwater pollution.