This book introduces readers to the main theories of phytoremediation and its application to arsenic-contaminated soils in China. The hyperaccumulation theories are introduced, including the use of hyperaccumulators to remove large amounts of arsenic without producing toxic symptoms. The use of synchrotron-based X-ray absorption fine structure radiation to disclose the hyperaccumulation mechanism – a method that makes it possible to detect the elements in plant tissues without destroying the sample – is introduced in detail. This book also includes practical application cases of phytoremediation, which are rarely found in the literature. Allowing readers to gain a thorough understanding of phytoremediation technology, and demonstrating its efficiency in cleaning arsenic-contaminated soils, the book offers a valuable asset for graduate students, lecturers, researchers and engineers in the field of soil remediation.

In recent years, there have been significant advances in the techniques of sampling and analysis, which has allowed the more accurate recording of environmental levels of many substances present in the environment. At the same time, processes for the remediation of contaminated matrices have evolved, through the application and/or combination of biological, physical, and chemical procedures.The purpose of this book is to present new studies aimed at determining levels of environmental pollution in various parts of the world. It also shows new alternatives for the remediation of contaminated matrices.

Providing an introduction, the scientific background, case studies and future perspectives of in-situ arsenic remediation technologies for soils, soil water and groundwater at geogenic and anthropogenic contaminated sites. The case studies present in-situ technologies about natural arsenic, specifically arsenate and arsenite, but also about organic arsenic compounds. This work covers geochemical, microbiological and plant ecological solutions for arsenic remediation. It will serve as a standard textbook for (post-)graduate students and researchers in the field of Environmental Sciences and Hydrogeochemistry as well as researchers, engineers, environmental scientists and chemists, toxicologists, medical scientists and even for general public seeking an in-depth view of arsenic which had been classed as a carcinogen. This book aims to stimulate awareness among administrators, policy makers and company executives of in-situ remediation technologies at sites contamined by arsenic and to improve the international cooperation on the subject.

This book reviews the progresses and achievements made in the past 20 years of research on soil pollution and remediation in China, and presents 50 review and research articles from all over China, including Hong Kong and Taiwan. The authors include scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and managers from 26 universities, 18 institutes, 4 leading enterprises and 2 government environmental protection departments. The contents cover fundamental research on soil pollution and remediation, technical development, project demonstration, policy and governance. The polluted soil/site types include farmland, industrial sites, mining areas and oilfields, with heavy metals (cadmium, arsenic, copper, chromium, mercury, lead, zinc, nickel, etc.), organic pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, organochlorine pesticides, phthalate esters, halogenated hydrocarbons, etc.), and metal–organic mixed pollutants. The remediation techniques mainly include physical and chemical remediation (thermal desorption, soil vapor extraction, in situ advanced chemical oxidation, solidification and stabilization), phytoremediation (phytostabilization, phytoextraction by hyperaccumulators, phyto-prevention by low accumulation plants), bioremediation (microbial adsorption and immobilization, microbial degradation, microbe-enhanced phytoremediation), and combined remediation merging multiple technologies. The governance and policy section mainly explores laws and regulations, criteria and standards, financial guarantees and the industrial market for soil environment and pollution prevention.

Heavy metals are severe environmental pollutants, and many of them are toxic even at very low concentrations. With industrial development, soil pollution with heavy metal elements have dramatically increased. The uptake of heavy metals via plants that are exposed to contaminated soils is a risk for human health and a major hazard for the ecosystem as a whole, including soil microorganisms. On the other hand, plants may be used in the decontamination of soils. The topics presented in this book include: sources of heavy metals contaminants in soils; plant species that can grow on contaminated soils; the phytoremediation of contaminated soils; tolerance, accumulation and detoxification mechanisms of zinc, copper, arsenic, cadmium and vanadium in plants; the critical role of sulfur metabolism in heavy metal tolerance; the role of aquatic macrophytes, plant growth-promoting bacteria, sugar crops and earthworms in detoxification; and heavy metal stabilization by promoting zeolite synthesis in soils.

The National Botanical Research Institute came into being as the 13th among a chain of National Laboratories established during April, 1953 under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research by the Govt. of India for advanced research in fields of specialisation which have a direct bearing on socio-economic, industrial and scientific advancement of the nation. Christened initially as National Botanic Gardens, the nucleus around which the institution took shape under its founder- Director Late Prof. K. N. Kaul, was a large herbarium of Indian flora and a centu- old botanical garden spread over 35 ha of land on the banks of River Gomti in the heart of Lucknow city. It’s a matter of great pleasure and profound satisfaction to me that a Golden Jubilee volume entitled, “Pteridology in the New Millennium” is being published and released during the Golden Jubilee year of NBRI in the honour of Professor B. K. Nayar who laid the foundation of the Pteridology Laboratory of the NBRI, which is now a well equipped laboratory for the study of Indian pteridophytes. Professor Nayar is a holistic Botanist as evident through his contributions and publications in almost all the areas of study of Pteridophyta. The contribution of Professor Nayar towards the development of modern Pteridology and the role of NBRI in it is indeed great and very important. His publications will be valuable for the younger generation of scientists in the field as well as for the more mature research workers and teachers.