The Bioscientist (Mar 2023)
POTENTIALS OF RUDERAL PLANTS IN THE REMEDIATION OF POTENTIALLY TOXIC METAL-CONTAMINATED SITES IN KADUNA METROPOLIS, NORTHWESTERN NIGERIA
Abstract
River channels in urban centres are polluted by some heavy metals mainly through runoff of surface waters or agricultural activities. The potential of some ruderal plants growing by River Kaduna to remediate potentially toxic elements was assessed. Concentration of Cd, Ni, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn in soil and plant samples was determined using Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence.Tenspecies of plants namely, Salix leadermanii, Ceruanapra tensis, Polygonum lanigerum, Physalis angulata, Polygonum limbatum, Cymbopogon giganteum, Heliotropium indicum, Croton lobatus, Hypoethes cancellata and Mimosa pigra that generally produce high above-ground biomass with bioconcentration factor >1were identified as phytoextractors of Cu. No hyper accumulator of other heavy metals were identified in this study. There are possibilities of further evaluating and genetically improving metal tolerance traits in some of these plant species in relation to their potential use in phytoremediation programmes in metal-polluted sites.
