title: Variation among plant species in pollutant removal from stormwater in biofiltration systems.
abstract: Biofiltration systems use vegetation to improve efficiency of pollutant removal from stormwater, but little is known of how plants vary in their capacity to improve biofilter effectiveness. We used a pot trial of 20 Australian species to investigate how species vary in the removal of pollutants from semisynthetic storm water passing through a soil filter medium. Effluent levels of total suspended solids (TSS), Al, Cr, Cu, Pb and Zn were similarly low for vegetated and non-vegetated soils, with reduction to <1-12% of levels in the stormwater input. N and P effluent concentrations were generally lower from vegetated than non-vegetated soils, but total N increased on average in effluent of both vegetated and non-vegetated soils relative to stormwater input. Effluent concentrations varied 2-4-fold among species for TSS, total N and P, total dissolved N (TDN), organic nitrogen and Cu, to more than 20-fold for NOx, NH4+, Mn, Pb and Fe. Species also varied markedly in pollutant removal per root mass (a means of standardising for plant size), with 18-50-fold variation among species in effluent concentrations of total P and N, TDN and organic N, to >150-fold variation in NOx and NH4+. Hence, choice of plant species may have marked effects on biofilter effectiveness.
authors.affiliation: Facility for Advancing Water Biofiltration-FAWB, School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Victoria 3800, Australia. jenny.read@sci.monash.edu.au <jenny.read@sci.monash.edu.au>
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Read
authors.forename: Tricia
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wevill
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fletcher
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Deletic
mesh_terms: D005374:Filtration / Q000379:methods; D019684:Magnoliopsida / Q000378:metabolism*; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D011891:Rain; D014873:Water Pollutants / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D008670:Metals; D014873:Water Pollutants; D010758:Phosphorus; D009584:Nitrogen