article · International Journal of Phytoremediation
Water hyacinth was evaluated for its capacity to remove nine heavy metals from three irrigation canals in the Nile Delta between April and November 2014. Measurements of plant biomass across monthly intervals revealed that heavy metal concentrations were significantly higher in roots than in other plant organs. The plant displayed a bioaccumulation factor greater than one for all nine metals, showing strong accumulation from the aquatic environment. Translocation factors remained below one for all metals except lead, showing limited transfer from roots to upper tissues. Concentrations of metals within plant organs frequently correlated with metal levels found in the surrounding canal water. These properties demonstrate that water hyacinth reflects cumulative water pollution impacts, making it a viable biological tool for monitoring environmental pollution and remediating irrigation channels contaminated with cadmium, cobalt, chromium, copper, iron, manganese, nickel, lead, and zinc.
Pollution from heavy metals in agricultural waterways threatens water safety and environmental health. Demonstrating that water hyacinth can actively accumulate these toxins provides an ecological method to monitor and potentially extract industrial and agricultural contaminants from irrigation networks. Understanding how the plant concentrates metals inside its root systems assists environmental managers in evaluating canal water quality and planning natural treatment interventions.
This field-level assessment demonstrates applied evidence for using water hyacinth in phytoremediation systems and environmental bio-monitoring schemes. Potential users include municipal water authorities, canal management organisations, and environmental monitoring agencies seeking low-cost, nature-based water cleanup methods. However, the study remains early-stage observational research in natural canals, meaning that practical implementation would require developing harvest, disposal, or metal recovery processes before commercial deployment could occur.
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The current research was carried out to estimate the potential of water hyacinth (WH) for removal of nine heavy metals (HMs) from three irrigation canals in Nile Delta. Sampling was achieved in monospecific and homogeneous WH stands at three irrigation canals in the study area, and WH biomass was sampled at monthly intervals from April 2014 to November 2014 using five randomly distributed quadrats (each 0.5 × 0.5 m) at each canal. All HM concentrations were significantly higher in the roots compared with the other WH organs. The WH was recognized by a bioaccumulation factor >1.0 for all HMs. The WH was recognized by translocation factor <1.0 for all HMs (except Pb). In many cases, the concentrations of the HMs in the different organs of WH were correlated with the same HMs in the water. Such correlations indicate that WH reflects the cumulative influences of environmental pollution from the water, and thereby suggesting its potential use in the bio-monitoring of most examined HMs. In conclusion, WH is a promising macrophyte for remediation of irrigation canals polluted with Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn.
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DOI: 10.1080/15226514.2019.1566885
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