Native Australian Species Are Effective in Extracting Multiple Heavy Metals from Biosolids

Selecting native plant species with characteristics suitable for extraction of heavy metals may have multiple advantages over non-native plants. Six Australian perennial woody plant species and one willow were grown in a pot trial in heavy metal-contaminated biosolids and a potting mix. The plants were harvested after fourteen months and above-ground parts were analysed for heavy metal concentrations and total metal contents. All native species were capable of growing in biosolids and extracted heavy metals to varying degrees. No single species was able to accumulate heavy metals at particularly high levels and metal extraction depended upon the bioavailability of the metal in the substrate. Metal extraction efficiency was driven by biomass accumulation, with the species extracting the most metals also having the greatest biomass yield. The study demonstrated that Grevillea robusta, Acacia mearnsii, Eucalyptus polybractea, and E. cladocalyx have the greatest potential as phytoextractor species in the remediation of heavy metal-contaminated biosolids. Species survival and growth were the main determinants of metal extraction efficiency and these traits will be important for future screening of native species.