Remediation capabilities of pilot-scale wetlands planted with Typha aungstifolia and Acorus calamus to treat landfill leachate

Abstract

Improper management and unsanitary approaches are implemented in disposal of leachate, which has resulted in groundwater pollution at village Uruli Devachi, Pune, India. Various physico-chemical treatment methods are commercially available for leachate treatment. However, the application of biological methods viz. phytoremediation to the municipal solid waste landfill leachate has been limited. We report the remediation ability of Typha aungstifolia and Acrorus calamus that is capable of reducing hazardous constituents from the landfill leachate. After 96 h of hydraulic retention time (HRT), it was observed that T. aungstifolia-treated sample showed high reduction potential in reducing biochemical oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, hardness, total dissolved solids, Na, Mg, Ca and Ni whereas A. calamus showed greater reduction capacity for alkalinity, Cl, Cu, Zn and Cr. Furthermore, it was also observed that T. aungstifolia withstood longer HRT than A. calamus. In situ application of T. aungstifolia and A. calamus for remediation of landfill leachate carries a tremendous potential that needs to be further explored.