Formatted Title
Use of Phytoscapes as a Nature-Based Solution for Fuel Spills
Background/Objectives
Several plants, such as poplar trees, are widely used in phytotechnologies, but there are many more that remain untested and unutilized. Wherever spills of biodegradable liquids occur, there is an opportunity to apply a phytotechnology. Sometimes these spills may be in locales that require or incorporate landscaping plants. At sites such as retail stations, there can be surficial releases of fuel, but in order to incorporate a phytotechnology, the plants used must adhere to local landscaping requirements. The phytoscape program was developed to test landscaping plants for different climatic regions of the U.S. that corresponded to marketing regions for their tolerance to fuel hydrocarbons.
Approach/Activities
Groundcovers, shrubs and trees commonly used for landscaping in California, the upper Midwest, and the temperate eastern U.S. were exposed to a range of gasoline concentrations in a greenhouse setting. The impact of the fuel exposure on their growth was assessed. While some species were completely intolerant, others demonstrated a dose response, and others were unaffected. The results of the testing program led to the development of a menu of plants that were incorporated into retail station design.
Results/Lessons Learned
Nature-based solutions can be applied in a variety of situations. This program of testing common landscape plants against hydrocarbons shows that there are numerous opportunities to use nature-based approaches for remediation; the only limit is our imagination.