Influence of different ornamental shrubs on the removal of heavy metals in a stormwater bioretention system

Russo, Alessio ORCID: 0000-0002-0073-7243, Speak, Andrew, Dadea, Claudia, Fini, Alessio, Borruso, Luigimaria, Ferrini, Francesco and Zerbe, Stefan (2019) Influence of different ornamental shrubs on the removal of heavy metals in a stormwater bioretention system. Advances in Horticultural Science, 33 (4). ISSN 0394-6169 (In Press)

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Abstract

Several laboratory studies have shown the ability of bioretention systems to remove pollutants from stormwater. However, to our knowledge, no existing research has addressed the use of ornamental shrubs for improving water quality in bioretention systems in Italian cities. In this short note we evaluated the potential of 3 ornamental shrub species (Lonicera pileata Oliver, Cotoneaster horizontalis Decne., Hypericum hidcoteense ‘Hidcote’) for the removal of heavy metals in a stormwater bioretention system. Pot experiments in “pot prototypes” using an alternative bioretention system filter media have been carried out in controlled conditions. The ornamental shrubs were irrigated with semisynthetic stormwater with known heavy-metal concentrations. Experimental results indicate that the removal of heavy metals by the system is very efficient. However, there was not a significant effect of the plant on the system’s retention efficiency. The removal of lead and cadmium by the system was over 87 %. In order to provide accurate information for bioretention design; future research should comparatively assess plant species in a laboratory-scale filter column and in situ.

Item Type:	Article
Article Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Urban stormwater runoff; Water Sensitive Urban Design; blue-green infrastructure; heavy metals
Subjects:	S Agriculture > SB Plant culture > SB469 Landscape gardening. Landscape architecture
Divisions:	Schools and Research Institutes > School of Arts > Constructed Environments
Research Priority Areas:	Creative Practice as Research
Depositing User:	Alessio Russo
Date Deposited:	07 Oct 2019 11:39
Last Modified:	07 Oct 2019 11:45
URI:	http://eprints.glos.ac.uk/id/eprint/7249

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