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Phytotechnology with Biomass Production
6.1 Introduction
Soil health, the capacity of soil to function as a vital living ecosystem,
impacts the productivity of soil and ultimately human health. Reversing
soil degradation by rebuilding healthy soils is a central theme of the emerging regenerative agriculture movement (Schreefel et al., 2020). Soils contaminated by military or other activities may require additional attention
to address contamination and improve soil health. For example, biological
organisms in the soil may have been reduced in number because of the
contamination.
This chapter addresses the role of phytoremediation in improving soil
health in the presence of contaminants. One goal at contaminated sites is to
reduce risk of harmful exposure to contaminants, but a concurrent goal can
be to improve the soil health sufficiently so the land can provide ecosystem
services such as crop production. Soil health can be characterized based on
physical, chemical, and biological properties.
Soil health and soil quality have both been used commonly. Soil health
often includes the state of a population of living organisms in soil, while
soil quality often refers to the physical and chemical state of the soil. Soil
health is recognized as a local, regional, and global concern (Karlen & Rice,
2017). Education, research, and good practices are needed to improve soil
quality. Government policies that are designed to improve soil health are
beneficial.
6.2 Properties of Soils
The physical properties of soils include porosity, bulk density, water-holding
capacity, texture, aggregation, infiltration, and penetration resistance.
Chemical properties include concentrations of nutrients such as nitrogen,
phosphorus, and potassium (N, P, and K), macronutrients such as calcium,
micronutrients, such as zinc, organic carbon, pH, salinity, cation exchange
capacity, and electrical conductivity (Brady & Weil, 2002). Biological properties include numbers of microorganisms, earthworms, other fauna, and soil
respiration (Whalen & Sampedro, 2010).
Soil health is related to the measured values of soil properties, but contamination, availability of contaminants, and physical properties such as compaction affect soil health also. Actions to improve soil properties, such as adding
amendments and building soil carbon, which is linked to both soil quality
and soil health (Blanco-Canqui et al., 2015), can be beneficial to soil health
and the phytoremediation process.
Phytotechnology with Biomass Production
6.1 Introduction
Soil health, the capacity of soil to function as a vital living ecosystem,
impacts the productivity of soil and ultimately human health. Reversing
soil degradation by rebuilding healthy soils is a central theme of the emerging regenerative agriculture movement (Schreefel et al., 2020). Soils contaminated by military or other activities may require additional attention
to address contamination and improve soil health. For example, biological
organisms in the soil may have been reduced in number because of the
contamination.
This chapter addresses the role of phytoremediation in improving soil
health in the presence of contaminants. One goal at contaminated sites is to
reduce risk of harmful exposure to contaminants, but a concurrent goal can
be to improve the soil health sufficiently so the land can provide ecosystem
services such as crop production. Soil health can be characterized based on
physical, chemical, and biological properties.
Soil health and soil quality have both been used commonly. Soil health
often includes the state of a population of living organisms in soil, while
soil quality often refers to the physical and chemical state of the soil. Soil
health is recognized as a local, regional, and global concern (Karlen & Rice,
2017). Education, research, and good practices are needed to improve soil
quality. Government policies that are designed to improve soil health are
beneficial.
6.2 Properties of Soils
The physical properties of soils include porosity, bulk density, water-holding
capacity, texture, aggregation, infiltration, and penetration resistance.
Chemical properties include concentrations of nutrients such as nitrogen,
phosphorus, and potassium (N, P, and K), macronutrients such as calcium,
micronutrients, such as zinc, organic carbon, pH, salinity, cation exchange
capacity, and electrical conductivity (Brady & Weil, 2002). Biological properties include numbers of microorganisms, earthworms, other fauna, and soil
respiration (Whalen & Sampedro, 2010).
Soil health is related to the measured values of soil properties, but contamination, availability of contaminants, and physical properties such as compaction affect soil health also. Actions to improve soil properties, such as adding
amendments and building soil carbon, which is linked to both soil quality
and soil health (Blanco-Canqui et al., 2015), can be beneficial to soil health
and the phytoremediation process.