Landfill Remediation with the Use of Short Rotation Biomass Woody Crops (SRWC) Energy Plantations and Provisioning Multiple Ecosystem Services

“Landfill Remediation with the Use of Short Rotation Biomass Woody Crops (SRWC) Energy Plantations and Provisioning Multiple Ecosystem Services”, TreeRemEnergy, aims to use a green technology called phytoremediation to clean up landfills. Phytoremediation uses plants, specifically fast-growing woody species like poplars and willows, to purify polluted soil, water, and air. These plants are suitable for this purpose because of their rapid growth, high biomass production, and well-developed root systems. The project’s goal is to create a technology solution for using short rotation biomass woody crop (SRWC) plantations as “phyto-buffers” to mitigate the harmful effects of landfills.

The project involved a phyto-recurrent selection process to identify the most suitable poplar and willow clones for specific landfill sites near Novi Sad and Belgrade. Researchers conducted trials in pots and then established plantation experiments with the selected clones at the base of the landfills. Throughout the growing season, they monitored the plants’ physiological and biochemical properties, as well as the properties of the soil and groundwater. The final evaluation assessed biomass production, combustion properties of the biomass, and the phytoremediation capacity of the selected clones.

The project’s most significant results include the identification of certain poplar and willow clones as either “generalists” or “specialists” for phytoremediation. For example, the poplar clone S1-8 proved to be a generalist with the highest biomass production and leaf-level gas exchange traits. The willow clone 378 and poplar clone 135/81 were classified as specialists because they showed significantly higher biomass production at the Novi Sad site compared to the Vinča site. Using a mix of both generalist and specialist clones in multiclonal plantations may improve both phytoremediation and biomass production stability across various sites. The project’s findings underscore the importance of selecting appropriate clones for phytoremediation on landfills and other contaminated lands.