Evaluation of tolerance and the phytoremediation potential of Inga uruguensis in soil contaminated with lead (Pb)

Abstract

The soil contamination by heavy metals is a problem that has long worried the population, and increasingly has increased the number of contaminated sites due to the large increase in industrial activities that use these elements during finishing processes. In this way, the MPs are an important group of contaminants and of much interest to conservation studies of the environment and human health. According CETESB, at lead, the reference value of concentration 17 mg kg-1; value of prevention 72 mg kg-1 and values of 300 mg kg-1 are already considered high and require intervention, agricultural areas should not have levels greater than 180 mg kg-1 and industrial areas 900 mg kg-1. In plants, MPs are also nutrients are not absorbed by the cells for presenting physical and chemical similarities which are nutrient elements. An environmentally friendly alternative is phytoremediation, which are used tolerant plants to heavy metal removal or stabilization of the contaminant in the soil. Inga uruguensis is a leguminous tree species that symbiotic system is stable in the presence of nitrate in the environment, feature that allows implantation into areas previously occupied by crops, for example. Thus, the main objective of this study is to characterize tolerance and phytoremediation potential of Inga uruguensis to heavy metal lead (Pb) to potential use of this plant as phytoremediation in contaminated areas.