Accumulation of heavy metals in a macrophyte Phragmites australis: implications to phytoremediation in the Arabian Peninsula wadis.

Heavy metal-polluted wetlands could be remediated by harvesting metal accumulating plants, i.e., using phytoextraction. We studied a macrophyte Phragmites australis and assessed its potential to be utilized in the phytoremediation of heavy metal-polluted wetlands, specifically in wadis in the Arabian Peninsula. We sampled six polluted wadi sites and measured Mn, Fe, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, and Pb concentrations in the roots, rhizomes, stems, and leaves of P. australis, as well as in sediment and water. We analyzed the correlations between different plant organs, water, and sediment, and calculated the accumulation and translocation of the metals to the plant organs. We found indications for the accumulation of Cd, Zn, and Pb into P. australis and somewhat contradictory indications for the accumulation of Cu. We suggest that P. australis is a good candidate to be utilized in the phytoremediation of heavy metal-polluted wadis in the Arabian Peninsula where the few wadis offer many valuable ecosystem services for urban citizens.