ABSTRACT
Higher plants have been shown to be able to take up ef—ciently pollutants from soil, sediments, surface water, and groundwater, leading to the concept of phytoremediation. Following the uptake into plant tissues, pollutants can undergo various fates, including biodegradation, immobilization, volatilization, or photolysis (Schnoor et al. 1995; Salt et al. 1998). Numerous bench-scale or greenhouse investigations have proven the ef—ciency of plants for the treatment of both heavy metal and organic-contaminated soil and groundwater (Newman and Reynolds 2004). However, even though
28.1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 541 28.2 Phytoremediation of Organic Pollutants ............................................................................... 543
28.2.1 The Bioremediation Concept .................................................................................... 543 28.2.2 Bioremediation by Higher Plants (Phytoremediation) .............................................. 543 28.2.3 Advantages and Limitations of Phytoremediation ...................................................544 28.2.4 Phytoremediation Processes .....................................................................................544 28.2.5 Metabolism of Xenobiotic Compounds by Plants ....................................................546
28.3 Phytoremediation of Pharmaceuticals .................................................................................. 547 28.3.1 Pharmaceuticals as Environmental Pollutants ......................................................... 547
