BACTERIAL ENHANCEMENT OF HYPERACCUMULATORS FOR REMEDIATION OF LEAD CONTAMINATED SITES

The remediation of soil and water contaminated with lead and other toxic metals presents a serious challenge to known cleanup methods. Ex situ remediation of some metal contaminated sites has been demonstrated on a small scale using specially adapted microbes, but removal of the contaminated soil and slow turnover rates downgrades this method. Hyperaccumulator plants show great potential, but only a very few, rare species have been identified as hyperaccumulators. Bacteria will be adapted to high lead concentrations through soil-extract culture methods. These adapted will increase the transport of lead from soil to plants. These adapted bacteria have the potential to generate hyperaccumulation of lead in common crop plants, such as Grasses, Legumes, and Brassica. These crop plants, because of these advantages of wide geographic distribution, fast growth, multiple cuttings, commercially available seed, genetic variability, and known agronomics, could significantly enhance hyperaccumulation as a site remediation technique. TPL will evaluate the contaminated lead sites, hyperaccumulators and remediation techniques to choose potential candidates. Bacterial and chemical enhancement methods for bacteria adaptation will be studied. A final greenhouse test of lead accumulation using the candidate plants with the enhancement techniques will be performed. Dr. K. Blake Kidd has been active in innovative reuse and reformulation technologies that exploit biological systems. Collaborating from NMSU are Drs. McCaslin and Lindemann, specialist in Agronomy and Soil Microbiology, respectively.