title: Field evaluation of the effectiveness of three industrial by-products as organic amendments for phytostabilization of a Pb/Zn mine tailings.
abstract: Although the potential of industrial by-products as organic amendments for phytostabilization has long been recognized, most of the previous studies addressing this issue have been laboratory-based. In this study, a field trial was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of three industrial by-products [sweet sorghum vinasse (SSV), medicinal herb residues (MHR) and spent mushroom compost (SMC)] as organic amendments for phytostabilization of abandoned Pb/Zn mine tailings. Our results showed the following: (i) when compared to the control tailings, the mean concentrations of diethylene-triamine-pentaacetic acid (DTPA)-extractable Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in SSV, MHR and SMC treatments decreased by 20.8-28.0%, 41.6-49.1%, 17.7-22.7% and 9.5-14.7%, respectively; (ii) the mean values of organic C, ammonium-N and available P in SSV, MHR and SMC treatments increased by 1.7-2.8, 10.8-14.9 and 3.9-5.1 times as compared with the mine tailings; and (iii) the addition of SSV, MHR and SMC significantly enhanced soil respiration and microbial biomass being 1.5-1.8 and 1.3-1.6 fold higher than those in the control tailings. There were no significant differences in soil biochemical properties among the plots amended with these by-products, suggesting that they were almost equally effective in improving the biochemical conditions of the tailings. In addition, the application of these amendments promoted seed germination, seedling growth, and consequently increased the vegetation cover and its biomass. Moreover, concentrations of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in above-ground parts of the plants were below the toxicity limit levels for animals. The results obtained in this field study confirmed that the three organic-rich industrial by-products could be used as amendments for phytostabilization of some types of mine tailings.
authors.affiliation: School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha 410083, P. R. China. yangsx1998@163.com and College of Bio-resources and Environmental Science, Hunan Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Control and Remediation of Heavy Metal Pollution from Mn-Zn Mining, Collaborative Innovation Center of Manganese-Zinc-Vanadium Industrial Technology (the 2011 Plan of Hunan Province), Jishou University, Jishou 416000, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Shengxiang
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Huayuan Environmental Protection Bureau, Huayuan 416000, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Jianbing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cao
authors.affiliation: College of Bio-resources and Environmental Science, Hunan Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Control and Remediation of Heavy Metal Pollution from Mn-Zn Mining, Collaborative Innovation Center of Manganese-Zinc-Vanadium Industrial Technology (the 2011 Plan of Hunan Province), Jishou University, Jishou 416000, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Fengmei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Bio-resources and Environmental Science, Hunan Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Control and Remediation of Heavy Metal Pollution from Mn-Zn Mining, Collaborative Innovation Center of Manganese-Zinc-Vanadium Industrial Technology (the 2011 Plan of Hunan Province), Jishou University, Jishou 416000, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Xizhu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: College of Bio-resources and Environmental Science, Hunan Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Control and Remediation of Heavy Metal Pollution from Mn-Zn Mining, Collaborative Innovation Center of Manganese-Zinc-Vanadium Industrial Technology (the 2011 Plan of Hunan Province), Jishou University, Jishou 416000, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Qingjing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Peng
authors.affiliation: School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha 410083, P. R. China. yangsx1998@163.com.
authors.forename: Zhihui
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha 410083, P. R. China. yangsx1998@163.com.
authors.forename: Liyuan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chai
mesh_terms: D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D052918:Environmental Restoration and Remediation / Q000379:methods*; D007220:Industrial Waste; D007854:Lead; D008906:Mining; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D015032:Zinc
chemical_list: D007220:Industrial Waste; D012989:Soil Pollutants; D007854:Lead; D015032:Zinc