In situ phytomanagement with Brassica napus and bio-stabilised municipal solid wastes is a suitable strategy for redevelopment of vacant urban land

Abstract

The decline of industrial manufacturing left large areas of vacant land in the peri-urban belts of many European cities, becoming an economic, social and environmental concern. In the meantime, available fertile soils are being over-used to produce energy crops, and municipal organic wastes are accumulating in landfills, actions that hamper the development of wealth-creating and sustainable societies. Phytomanagement has emerged as a valuable in-situ strategy for the management of peri-urban vacant spaces, able to restore their fundamental ecosystem services. The field experiment described here was undertaken to study the potential of bio-stabilised material (BSM) obtained from commingled municipal solid wastes, both for Brassica napus (rapeseed) crop production and to improve the health/functioning of peri-urban vacant soil as a first step toward urban greening. Three months before sowing, soils were amended with 0, 50 and 100 t FW BSM ha -1 . Data were gathered on the physiology and growth of B. napus at the BBCH-16-17 (57 days) and BBCH-89 (260 days) phenological stages. The activity, biomass, and functional diversity of soil microbial communities were measured concomitantly. Overall, the results showed that the BSM-amended soils became more productive and functional than the unamended soils. At the plant level, the leaf area of B. napus plants was significantly increased at the BBCH-16-17 stage, which later, at BBCH-89 stage, translated to a higher yield. At the soil level, mainly microbial activities related to C and N turnover increased after BSM amendment. This was key in satisfying the oilseed nutritional requirements under our experimental conditions. This innovative study advocates for a circular economy and shows that the combination of BSM amendment and B. napus can be efficacious for the redevelopment of periurban vacant soils. 2013) as well in North America (Newman et al., 2016), the

Using Native Woody Plants for Phytomanagement of Urban Technosols Contaminated by Wood Pole Preservatives

“…Based on survival, photosynthesis and root growth occurrence, a performance score was attributed to each species in each contam- ination treatment (Figure 4). The best performing species in the non-contaminated treatment (scores of 8-9)-R. typhina, S. eriocephala, A. saccharinum, and C. stolonifera-were among the least performing species in the contaminated treatment (scores of [4][5][6]. The moderately performing species in the non-contaminated treatment, S. bebbiana and S. canadensis had similar scores (i.e., score of 7) when exposed to the contaminated treatment, placing them at the top of the ranking.…”

“…[4] A sustainable in situ reclamation approach can increase the ecological value of technosols and eventually reverse environmental degradation. [5] Phytotechnology, the use of plants to address environmental issues, is particularly appropriate for the reclamation of technosols. Establishing a dense plant cover on such soils could help reduce heat islands, [6] manage stormwater, [7] and could also be used for phytoremediation in the case of contaminated land.…”

Mycorrhizal-Assisted Phytoremediation and Intercropping Strategies Improved the Health of Contaminated Soil in a Peri-Urban Area

“…Abandonment of agricultural and industrial sites in the periphery of many cities often results in the presence of randomly distributed vacant areas that are highly vulnerable and susceptible to uncontrolled deposition of wastes, thus contributing to soil degradation and contamination (Németh and Langhorst, 2014;Gómez-Sagasti et al, 2018;Míguez et al, 2020). Properly managed, these abandoned sites not only can be a valuable ecological resource, for instance by providing ecosystem services (Nassauer and Raskin, 2014;Herrmann et al, 2016) and harboring biodiversity (Delgado de la Flor et al, 2020;Perry et al, 2020), but can also afford an opportunity for land redevelopment and hence economic and social benefits (Kim et al, 2018).…”

“…Properly managed, these abandoned sites not only can be a valuable ecological resource, for instance by providing ecosystem services (Nassauer and Raskin, 2014;Herrmann et al, 2016) and harboring biodiversity (Delgado de la Flor et al, 2020;Perry et al, 2020), but can also afford an opportunity for land redevelopment and hence economic and social benefits (Kim et al, 2018). Implementation of sustainable, cost-efficient in-situ interventions, such as phytoremediation strategies, can improve soil health and thus contribute to the redevelopment of degraded peri-urban vacant lands (Míguez et al, 2020).…”

“…The low availability of nutrients and contaminants in soil, as well as the unacceptably long time period required for effective remediation, are often the most important limitations of phytoremediation in the field. Two soil-management practices (used singly or in combination) that can assist phytoremediation processes are application of organic amendments (Gómez-Sagasti et al, 2018;Míguez et al, 2020) and inoculation of microorganisms such as mycorrhizal fungi, which can form symbiotic associations with most land plants (Miransari, 2011). Under natural conditions, Populus species and hybrids have the unique property of being colonized by both endo-and ectomycorrhizal (arbuscular) fungi, making them unique model systems for study of the interactions between plants and microorganisms (Martin et al, 2004;Karliński et al, 2010).…”