Relationship Between Contaminant Loss and Toxicity During Phytoremediation Using Solid-Phase Microtox® Tests

In recent years, phytoremediation has been shown to be an effective means of lowering concentrations of metals and organics in contaminated soils and sediments (Anderson et al. 1993; Erickson et al. 1994). Although many phytoremediation studies have tracked contaminant concentration over time, the authors know of no studies that have determined relative toxicity reductions. A fast, inexpensive, and reliable toxicity test to adequately determine risk reduction in lieu of expensive chemical analyses would be beneficial when using phytoremediation as a method of choice in contaminated site cleanup.