Bio-remediation The NyPa Forage tolerates a very wide range of degraded sites, salt to 1.25 time ocean water, high pH (10.3- 10.9), high metal content, copper, manganese, zinc. high organic loads. The plants do not retain salts in their tissue, usually passing it through its bi cellular salt gland.
Has been used to remediate alkaline bauxite slag from aluminium refineries, using sewage sludge for nutrients (U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [2011, October 12].
It has been widely used with food and other saline effluents. It was evaluated by Murdoch University in Western Australia to look for the best plant based solutions to strip nutrients from the saline effluent from land based aquaculture. asa means of stripping nutrients from aquaculture effluent Results: "NyPa Forage was the best by a significant margin, and had a productive use. “It removed up to 88% of total nitrogen and 95% of total phosphorous from aquaculture effluent over an 8 month period. Importantly, removal efficiencies were high for all of the potentially toxic components of nitrogen (96%) and nitrite/ nitrate (98%)”.[1]
[1] New Technologies for Sustainable Commercial Finfish Culture Partridge G.J., Sarre G., Lymbery A., Jenkins G., Doupé R., Kay, G., Michael, R. J., Willett, D and Erler D. Aquaculture Development unit, Murdoch University Et-Al 2008.
Has been used to remediate alkaline bauxite slag from aluminium refineries, using sewage sludge for nutrients (U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/ [2011, October 12].
It has been widely used with food and other saline effluents. It was evaluated by Murdoch University in Western Australia to look for the best plant based solutions to strip nutrients from the saline effluent from land based aquaculture. asa means of stripping nutrients from aquaculture effluent Results: "NyPa Forage was the best by a significant margin, and had a productive use. “It removed up to 88% of total nitrogen and 95% of total phosphorous from aquaculture effluent over an 8 month period. Importantly, removal efficiencies were high for all of the potentially toxic components of nitrogen (96%) and nitrite/ nitrate (98%)”.[1]
[1] New Technologies for Sustainable Commercial Finfish Culture Partridge G.J., Sarre G., Lymbery A., Jenkins G., Doupé R., Kay, G., Michael, R. J., Willett, D and Erler D. Aquaculture Development unit, Murdoch University Et-Al 2008.
| [1]New_technologies_for_sustainable.pdf |
In this this picture the NyPa Forage is growing in saline bitumen in Arkansas, nothing has grown here since the field was opened in the 19 th century
Yensen, N P, Hinchman R R, Negri M C, Mollock G N, Settle T, Keiffer C S, Carty D J,. Rodgers B, Martin R, & Erickson R. (2002). Using halophytes to manage oilfield saltwater: disposal by irrigation/evapotranspiration and remediation of spill. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Svc.
Yensen, N P, Hinchman R R, Negri M C, Mollock G N, Settle T, Keiffer C S, Carty D J,. Rodgers B, Martin R, & Erickson R. (2002). Using halophytes to manage oilfield saltwater: disposal by irrigation/evapotranspiration and remediation of spill. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Svc.
In this picture the NyPa forage is growing in a gypsum flat near Meningie in South Australia that was previously bare, livestock have been grazing this rotationally for 8 years
Plant Growing Characteristics
Being adapted for inter-tidal living, the plants produce highly in saline waterlogged conditions. While they perform best in light soils they will also grow in hard sodic clays.
Perennial: they need planting only once to produce a dense year round cover.
Rhizomaceous: they establish and spread strongly through their roots, which via a rhizocanicular effect, facilitate percolation and improve soil structure and organic (and so carbon) content. Their roots follow the saline water table down more than a metre, effectively utilising saline water for production while tending to depress saline water tables. The roots have pronounced aerenchyma, inner ‘tubes’, providing gas drainage enabling growth in anaerobic conditions. The roots periodically ‘die off’ and re shoot, providing new drainage lines; a so called ‘swiss cheese’ effect, greatly improving the organically active carbon store.
Euryhalic: they tolerate a wide range of salinities, and are true halophytes (salt loving) so that production increases as salinity increases up to peaks below seawater. Having bi cellular salt glands they do not store salt in their tissue or seed cells, but exude it at the leaf surface, to blow away or drop onto the ground, and then to either drain away or back to the water-table after rain. Over time they tend to redistribute the salt originally concentrated by water movement.
Eurythermic: they tolerate a wide temperature range, however being a C4, they produce best at high temperatures (27ºC - 50ºC), tending towards dormancy in cold weather.
Tolerance of Hostile Salt conditions:
Of particular importance for land and salt remediation is the plants tolerance for heavy metal salts and waste removal of Ph particularly alkaline salts.
Of particular importance for land and salt remediation is the plants tolerance for heavy metal salts and waste removal of Ph particularly alkaline salts.
| The_role_of_nypa_distichlis_spp_cultivars2016_rev.pdf |