January 2015 Vol.3 No.1

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Review

Phytoremediation Potential of Free Floating Macrophytes – A Review

Nuzhat Shafi, Ashok K. Pandit, Azra N. Kamili and Basharat Mushtaq

Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, Jammu and Kashmir, India

^*Corresponding Author’s Email: geonuzu@gmail.com

Accepted February 01, 2015

Abstract

Water bodies are the main targets for disposing the pollutants directly or indirectly and are again at the receiving end as the storm water, residential and commercial waste is disposed into it. The prevailing conventional purification technologies such as waste water treatment plants, drinking water purification plants used to remove these contaminants are too costly and sometimes non-eco friendly also. Therefore, the research is oriented towards low cost and eco friendly technologies for water purification, which will be beneficial for community. The present review highlights the phytoaccumulation potential of free floating macrophytes with emphasis on utilization of Azolla spp., Lemna spp. and Salvinia spp. for phytoremediation. We find that these species have many unique properties ideal for phytoremediation: they have fast growth and primary production, high bioaccumulation capacity, ability to transform or degrade contaminants, ability to regulate chemical speciation, resilient to extreme contaminant concentration and can be applied on multiple pollutants simultaneously.

Keywords: Freshwater, Free-floating macrophytes, phytoremediation, heavy metals