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Per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) consist of a large group of compounds used to make products more resistant to stains, grease, and water and for fire suppression. They have been widely detected in the environment and exposure has been linked to adverse human health effects. Phytoremediation could be used to remediate PFAS-impacted sites, but there is little information on herbaceous and woody plant species uptake of PFAS compounds from soil. A greenhouse study evaluated the potential for eight herbaceous and seven woody plant species to absorb PFAS compounds. Six PFAS compounds: PFPeA, PFHxA, PFOA, PFBS, PFHxS, and PFOS were added weekly to irrigation water, and the plants grown for up to 14 weeks after an initial establishment period. Significant accumulation of all PFAS compounds occurred in at least one plant species. Mass recovery in above-ground tissue by the best performing plant ranged from a low of 3.8% for PFOS by Festuca rubra to a high of 42% for PFPeA by Schedonorus arundinaceus. Hyperaccumulation, defined as tissue/soil concentrations >10/1, was observed for all six PFAS compounds in at least one plant species. These results demonstrate the potential use of phytoremediation as a tool for remediating PFAS-contaminated sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Irrigation with treated wastewaters can improve nutrient levels and yield of crops planted on degraded soils. This study evaluated how irrigation with treated industrial wastewater affected biomass production and nutrition of maize plants and physio-chemical properties of a degraded soil. The experiment was conducted in a greenhouse using PVC columns. Treatments consisted of 8 treatments irrigated with clean water and increasing doses of N and P, and 8 treatments with 4 proportions of wastewater irrigation (25%, 50%, 75% and 100% v/v). In general, maize biomass did not differ between irrigation water sources. Differences were largely associated with N nutrition. We observed increases in concentrations of N, P, K, S, Mn, Na, Cu, and Zn in tissue of maize under irrigation with wastewater. The addition of treated wastewater increased the P and Na concentrations, and EC values in the soil without affecting clay dispersion in water. An associated economic analysis indicated that wastewater irrigation would not be economically feasible without including environmental benefits. In southern Brazil, the proportion of irrigation water that is wastewater should not exceed 50%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of treated industrial effluents to irrigate plants is an alternative, because of nutrients that can increase yield of the agricultural crops. This study was conducted to determine irrigation with treated effluent and gypsum application, which changes the chemical and physical characteristics of soils and the growth and nutrition of millet (Pennisetum glaucum). Thus, an experiment was conducted on PVC columns with three soil classes, Typic Hapludox, Typic Hapludult, and Arenic Hapludult. Nutrient and Na+concentrations in the millet biomass reflected concentrations of elements in the effluent and soil. In the control, low N levels were found in the biomass, while higher leaf N concentrations were observed, due to irrigation with treated effluent. In the short term, irrigation with treated industrial effluent by controlled application could be an alternative and a complementary source of nutrients for plants, reducing the volume of nutrients and organic materials discharged into water bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contamination of soils and groundwater by chlorobenzene and benzene is a common problem at industrial sites worldwide. Since chemical remediation techniques are rarely completely effective, remnants of these contaminants often persist at levels that can still influence ecosystem health. We evaluated the potential ofPinus taedaandEucalyptus urograndisto accelerate the removal of these compounds from sand/water systems using a completely randomized block greenhouse experiment with a no-plant control. At 2-day intervals, we added a solution containing both chlorobenzene and benzene with the same concentration of 50 mg L−1(25 mg pot−1), and we monitored leachate concentrations daily. The planted treatments showed greater decrease of contaminants over time. In the absence of plants, the contaminant mass decreased 50–60% during each 2-day cycle; whereas, in the planted treatments the contaminant mass decreased 91–98%. At the end of the experiment the plant roots, leaves, and the sand-substrate each contained less than 1 mg kg−1of contaminants, which is ∼1% of the total contaminant mass added. In addition, we observed no tree mortality even at concentrations exceeding the aqueous solubility limit of both compounds. Our results suggest both trees are good candidates for remediating chlorobenzene and benzene in soils and groundwater. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The years 1888-89 saw the production of two influential collections of Irish folklore: Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry by William Butler Yeats and Leabhar Sgeulaigheachta by Douglas Hyde. These works broke strongly with the unscientific and patronising tone of the Buchmarchen tradition in Ireland and established a new theory of folklore. In this theory, Yeats and Hyde distanced peasant narrators in an attempt to secure literary and, ultimately, aristocratic origins for their tales. As a result, Hyde and Yeats, despite their Ascendancy upbringings, could view themselves (and not the peasant narrators) as the legitimate inheritors of folklore narratives. The very stories collected, however, challenge this power dynamic. Stories such as 'Monachar agus Manachar' directly critique the perceived unjust division of labour and profit in rural Ireland in a way that parallels the act of folklore collection. The tales themselves resist the rhetorical frameworks of their Ascendancy collectors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]