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Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil and Plants
Sources, Effects, and Management
This page intentionally left blank
Hazardous and Trace
Materials in Soil and Plants
Sources, Effects, and Management

Edited by
M. Naeem
Plant Physiology Section, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University,
Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

Tariq Aftab
Plant Physiology Section, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University,
Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

Abid Ali Ansari

Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia

Sarvajeet Singh Gill

Centre for Biotechnology, Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India

Anca Macovei
University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
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Contents

List of contributors xiii 2.5 Conclusion 13

Foreword xvii References 13
Preface xix
3. Long-term challenges, the
characteristics and behavior of
Section A various hazardous material and
trace elements in soil 15
Overview of hazardous and trace
materials in soil, plants & Farhan Rafiq, Muhammad Ijaz, Abdul Sattar,
Muhammad Shahid, Ahmad Sher,
environment Sami Ul-Allah and Anees Ur Rehman

1. An overview of the hazardous and 3.1 Introduction 15

trace materials in soil and plants 3 3.2 Soil contamination from the fertilizer
trace element 16
Abid Ali Ansari, Sarvajeet Singh Gill, Tariq Aftab, 3.2.1 Introduction 16
Rukhsar Parwez, Ritu Gill and M. Naeem 3.2.2 Various fertilizer and fertilizers for
1.1 Introduction 3 micronutrients 16
1.2 Conclusion 6 3.2.3 Over to crops and grazing animals
References 6 for trace element 17
3.2.4 Management strategies of toxic
element 17
2. Biological contamination and the 3.3 Trace element deficient soils 18
control of biological contaminants in 3.3.1 Introduction 18
the environment 9 3.3.2 The trace element soils definition 18
3.3.3 Soil factors with deficits in trace
Robab Salami, Masoumeh Kordi, elements 19
Nasser Delangiz, Ebrahim Moghiseh, 3.4 Arsenic, antimony, cadmium, zinc, copper 21
Behnam Asgari Lajayer, Chetan Keswani and 3.4.1 Arsenic 21
Tess Astatkie 3.4.2 Antimony 22
2.1 Introduction 9 3.4.3 Cadmium 23
2.2 Effect of biological contamination 9 3.4.4 Zinc 24
2.2.1 Biological contamination of food 9 3.4.5 Copper 25
2.2.2 Biological contamination of water 10 3.5 Conclusion and directions for the future 26
2.2.3 Biological contamination of air 11 References 26
2.2.4 Biological pollutants related to
human health 11 4. Effect of selenium on soils and
2.3 Measures to control biological plants and its management 33
contaminants 11
Kavita Khatana and Jitendra K. Nagar
2.3.1 Physical removal 12
2.3.2 Chemical additives 12 4.1 Introduction 33
2.3.3 Changing environmental conditions 12 4.2 General characteristic and occurrence
2.4 Biotechnology and biological of Se 33
contamination 12 4.3 Occurrence in soil 34

v
vi Contents

4.4 Occurrence in plants 34 6.3.2 Ex situ 62

4.5 Effects of Se on plants and soils 35 6.3.3 In situ: natural or biological-based 62
4.6 Methods of analysis of selenium 36 6.3.4 Microbial remediation 63
4.7 Selenium deficient regions 36 6.3.5 Physical remediation 66
4.8 Selenium enrichment of crops 37 6.3.6 Ex situ physical treatment 66
4.9 Selenium and human health 37 6.3.7 Chemical remediation technique 67
4.10 Toxicity of Se 37 6.3.8 Thermal remediation 68
4.11 Selenium genetics in plants and their 6.3.9 Ex situ thermal remediation 68
biofortification handling 38 6.4 Conclusion 69
4.12 Selenium metabolism genetic References 69
engineering for plant restoration 39
4.13 Conclusion 39 7. Soil heavy metal pollution:
References 40 impact on plants and methods of
bioremediation 73
Section B Muhammad Ahsan, Adnan Younis,
Hazardous and trace materials Moazzam Jamil, Muhammad Nafees,
in the soil environment Muhammad Ammar Raza and Imran Ahmad
7.1 Introduction 73
5. Heavy metals in contaminated soil: 7.2 Occurrence of heavy metal(loid)s in soil 74
a bird’s eye view on causes, risks, 7.3 Heavy metal polluted soils 75
and strategies for remediation 45 7.4 Heavy metals impact on soil
Saloni Soni and Aparna Pareek microorganisms 76
7.5 Impact of heavy metals contaminated
5.1 Introduction 45 soil on plant growth 76
5.1.1 Listing of heavy metals 45 7.6 Bioremediation of heavy metal
5.1.2 Heavy metal toxicity and contaminated soils 77
environmental crisis 45 7.6.1 Bioremediation of heavy metals
5.2 Heavy metal contamination in soil 46 polluted soils by using microorganisms 79
5.2.1 Causes of heavy metal 7.7 Phytoremediation 80
deposition in soil 46 7.7.1 Phytoextraction 80
5.2.2 Impact of heavy metal contaminated 7.7.2 Phytovolatalization 80
soil on lives 48 7.7.3 Phytostabilization 80
5.2.3 Strategies to overcome and remediate 7.7.4 Phytodegradation 80
heavy metal contamination in soil 51 7.8 Combination of plants and
5.3 Conclusion 55 microorganisms for the remediation of
References 55 heavy metal contaminated soils 81
7.9 Conclusion 81
6. Soil chemical pollution and References 81
remediation 57
Mahesh R. Ghule and Purushottam K. Ramteke Section C
6.1 Introduction 57 Hazardous and trace materials
6.2 Soil pollution 57 in the aquatic environment
6.2.1 Soil pollution causes 57
6.2.2 Modern agriculture practices 57 8. Removal of pharmaceuticals and
6.2.3 Urban waste materials 59 personal care products from water
6.2.4 Industrial waste materials 59
and wastewater through biological
6.2.5 Biological agents 59
6.2.6 Radioactive agents 59
processes: an overview 87
6.2.7 Types of chemicals that cause soil Behnam Asgari Lajayer, Khatereh Nobaharan,
pollution 59 Ebrahim Moghiseh, Zahra Biglari Quchan Atigh,
6.3 Remediation of soil pollutants 62 Nasser Delangiz, Mohammad Mosaferi,
6.3.1 In situ 62 Tariq Aftab and Tess Astatkie
 Contents vii

8.1 Introduction 87 10.2.2 Lead (Pb) 115

8.2 Occurrence and toxicity of pharmaceuticals 10.2.3 Mercury (Hg) 115
and personal care products 88 10.3 Consequences of hazardous elements
8.3 Biological treatment technologies for on plant growth 116
pharmaceuticals and personal care products 10.4 Uptake mechanisms of hazardous
removal from water and wastewater 88 element 117
8.3.1 Biological trickling filters 88 10.4.1 Pathways of metal transport in
8.3.2 Biological nitrification and plants 119
denitrification 88 10.4.2 Mechanisms of metal stress
8.3.3 Biological activated carbon 89 tolerance and metal destiny in
8.3.4 Microalgae and fungal bioreactors 89 plants 119
8.3.5 Activated sludge 90 10.4.3 Sources of metals in food crops:
8.3.6 Membrane bioreactors 91 genotoxicity and health risks 120
8.3.7 Constructed wetlands 93 10.5 Management of hazardous elements 121
8.3.8 Biosorption 94 10.5.1 Reduction of the source 122
8.3.9 Aerobic and anaerobic digestion of 10.5.2 Eco-remediation 122
sludge 94 10.5.3 Physicochemical and chemical
8.4 Concluding remarks and future strategies 124
perspectives 95 10.6 Nanoparticle techniques 125
References 95 10.7 Conclusion 125
References 125
9. Sediment pollution in aquatic
environments of the metropolitan
region of Buenos Aires, Argentina 97 11. Bioaccumulation and translocation
of some trace elements in
Gabriel Bası́lico, Valeria Ionno, Gabriela Iglesias, co-occurring halophytes
Melisa S. Olivelli and Laura de Cabo (Amaranthaceae) from Algerian
9.1 Introduction 97 saline areas 129
9.2 Sediment pollution by basins and water
Bouzid Nedjimi
bodies 99
9.2.1 Luján basin 99 11.1 Introduction 129
9.2.2 Reconquista basin 100 11.2 Plant description 130
9.2.3 Matanza-Riachuelo basin 102 11.2.1 Salicornia arabica L. 130
9.2.4 Basins of south metropolitan 11.2.2 Suaeda mollis (Desf.) Del. 130
region of Buenos Aires 102 11.2.3 Traganum nudatum Del. 130
9.2.5 Lower Paraná delta 104 11.3 Trace element contents in soil 130
9.2.6 Rı́o de la Plata estuary 104 11.4 Trace element contents in halophytic
9.3 Sediment management and remediation 105 species 130
9.4 Final remarks 107 11.4.1 Antimony (Sb) 132
References 108 11.4.2 Barium (Ba) 133
11.4.3 Bromine (Br) 133
11.4.4 Calcium (Ca) 133
Section D 11.4.5 Cerium (Ce) 134
11.4.6 Cobalt (Co) 134
Hazardous and trace materials in 11.4.7 Chromium (Cr) 134
plants 11.4.8 Cesium (Cs) 134
11.4.9 Europium (Eu) 134
10. Hazardous elements in plants: 11.4.10 Iron (Fe) 134
sources, effect and management 113 11.4.11 Hafnium (Hf) 135
11.4.12 Potassium (K) 135
Parul Tyagi, Ayushi Singh and Rajiv Ranjan
11.4.13 Lanthanum (La) 135
10.1 Introduction 113 11.4.14 Rubidium (Rb) 135
10.2 Sources of “hazardous elements” 115 11.4.15 Scandium (Sc) 135
10.2.1 Arsenic (As) 115 11.4.16 Samarium (Sm) 135
viii Contents

11.4.17 Terbium (Tb) 135 13.2 Lead 180

11.4.18 Zinc (Zn) 136 13.3 Mercury (Hg) 181
11.5 The principal component analysis 136 13.4 Cadmium 182
11.6 Bioaccumulation and translocation 13.5 Chromium (Cr) 183
factors 137 13.6 Arsenic (As) 184
11.7 Estimation of the dietary intake of some 13.7 Copper 185
essential elements by small ruminants 138 13.8 Nickel (Ni) 186
11.8 Conclusion 138 13.9 Zinc (Zn) 187
Acknowledgments 139 13.10 Iron 189
References 139 13.11 Conclusion 189
References 190
12. Heavy metal toxicity and
underlying mechanisms for heavy 14. Spatial distribution of arsenic
metal tolerance in medicinal species in soil ecosystem and
legumes 141 their effect on plant physiology 197
Rukhsar Parwez, M. Naeem, Tariq Aftab,
Monika Yadav and Nar Singh Chauhan
Abid Ali Ansari, Sarvajeet Singh Gill and
Ritu Gill 14.1 Introduction 197
14.2 Arsenic around the globe 198
12.1 Introduction 141
14.2.1 Oxidation of the arsenic
12.2 Heavy metals toxicity-tolerance
sulfide ores 198
mechanisms in plants 144
14.2.2 Competitive exchange of
12.3 Effects of heavy metal stress on
phosphate from fertilizers 198
medicinal legumes 146
14.2.3 Change in soil physiology 198
12.3.1 Aluminum 146
14.2.4 FeOOH reduction and
12.3.2 Copper 148
dissolution 198
12.3.3 Zinc 149
14.3 Arsenic toxicity and epidemiology 199
12.3.4 Cadmium 149
14.4 Arsenic exposure in plants 200
12.3.5 Chromium (Cr) 150
14.4.1 Arsenate uptake 200
12.3.6 Lead (Pb) 151
14.4.2 Arsenite uptake 200
12.3.7 Arsenic (As) 152
14.4.3 Mechanism of entry of
12.3.8 Silver (Ag) 153
methylated arsenic forms 201
12.3.9 Mercury (Hg) 153
14.5 Effects of arsenic on plants growth and
12.3.10 Nickel (Ni) 154
development 201
12.4 Alleviation of heavy metal stress in
14.5.1 Reduction in the rate of
legumenous plants 155
photosynthesis 201
12.4.1 Plant growth regulators
14.5.2 Reduction in the amount of
application 155
chlorophyll 201
12.4.2 Nutrient application 162
14.5.3 Reduced mineral intake 202
12.4.3 Ecological approaches 164
14.5.4 Effect on ATP (Adenosine
12.5 Use of nanotechnology/nanoparticles 164
triphosphate) synthesis 202
12.6 Production of heavy metal-tolerant
14.5.5 Effect on cell membranes 202
transgenic plants 165
14.5.6 Stunted growth 202
12.7 Conclusion 166
14.6 Arsenic resistance mechanisms in
Acknowledgment 166
microbes 202
References 166
14.6.1 Arsenite efflux pump 203
14.6.2 Arsenate reductase 203
13. Biochemical responses of plants 14.6.3 Arsenic repressor/regulatory
towards heavy metals in soil 179 protein 204
14.6.4 Arsenite efflux ATPase 204
Gurvarinder Kaur, Neha Dogra, Shruti Kaushik,
14.6.5 Metallochaperones 205
Isha Madaan, Anmol Sidhu and Geetika Sirhindi
14.6.6 Methyltransferases 205
13.1 Introduction: heavy metals as pollutants 179 14.6.7 Proteins for arsenic resistance 205
 Contents ix

14.6.8 Aquaglyceroporins 206 16.6 Arsenic toxicity 234

14.6.9 ArsT and ArsO proteins 206 16.7 Mercury toxicity 235
14.6.10 Arsenic resistance protein ArsN 206 16.8 Plant response over hazardous and
14.7 Arsenite oxidation and arsenate trace metal exposure 235
respiration 206 16.9 Phytohormones role in reversing the
14.7.1 As(III) Oxidation impact of metal-induced stress on
(aox and aro system) 206 plants 236
14.7.2 arr system of As(V) reduction 207 16.9.1 Phytohormones 236
14.8 Arsenic mitigation strategies 207 16.10 Cytokinins response over
14.8.1 Bioremediation 207 metal-induced toxicity 237
14.8.2 Biosorption 207 16.11 Auxin response over metal-induced
14.8.3 Phytoremediation 208 toxicity 238
14.8.4 Genetic engineering 209 16.12 Salicylic acid response over
14.9 Conclusion 209 metal-induced toxicity 238
References 210 16.13 Gibberellins response over
metal-induced toxicity 239
16.14 Jasmonates response over
15. Aluminum in tea plants: metal-induced toxicity 239
phytotoxicity, tolerance and 16.15 Conclusion 240
mitigation 217 References 240
Dipanjali Ray, Pooja Moni Baruah and Niraj
Agarwala
17. Cadmium-induced oxidative
15.1 Introduction 217 stress and remediation in plants 247
15.2 Absorption and transportation of Al 218
15.3 Factors that increase the toxicity of Al 218 Kankan Datta and Aryadeep Roychoudhury
15.4 Al phytotoxicity 218 17.1 Introduction 247
15.4.1 Mechanism 219 17.2 Cd source and contamination 247
15.4.2 Metabolic effect of Al toxicity 220 17.3 Factors affecting Cd accumulation in
15.5 Association of Al with nutrients 220 plants 248
15.5.1 Interfere calcium uptake 220 17.3.1 pH 248
15.5.2 Al alleviates iron toxicity 220 17.3.2 Organic matter 248
15.5.3 Al alleviates manganese toxicity 221 17.3.3 Aging 249
15.6 Tolerance mechanism 221 17.3.4 Plant species 249
15.6.1 Exclusion mechanism 221 17.4 Effects of Cd on plant systems 249
15.6.2 Internal tolerance mechanism 222 17.4.1 Seed germination 249
15.7 Mitigation of Al toxicity 224 17.4.2 Plant growth and development 250
15.7.1 Alteration in the soil pH 224 17.4.3 Oxidative damages 250
15.7.2 Industrial byproduct 224 17.5 Alleviation of Cd toxicity 251
15.7.3 Application of mineral nutrients 224 17.5.1 Antioxidant enzymes 251
15.8 Conclusion and future perspectives 225 17.5.2 Plant growth regulators 251
References 225 17.6 Application of biochars 251
17.7 Phytochelatin synthase genes and
16. Role of phytohormones in mitigating their expression 252
the harmful impacts of hazardous and 17.8 Metallothionein and related gene
trace materials on agriculture crops 231 expression 253
17.9 Transgenic development using
Shamiya Jahan and Sheela Rautela
PC and MT genes 254
16.1 Introduction 231 17.10 Phytoremediation 255
16.2 Impact of hazardous and trace mineral 17.11 Organic manure and other compounds 255
elements on crop plants 232 17.12 Conclusion and future perspectives 255
16.3 Zinc toxicity 233 Acknowledgements 256
16.4 Cadmium toxicity 234 References 256
16.5 Lead toxicity 234 Further reading 261
x Contents

Section E 20.3 Cadmium toxicity and its impact on

plants health 284
Hazardous and trace materials and 20.3.1 Impact on seed germination 285
microorganisms 20.3.2 Impact on plant growth and
development 285
18. Plant growth-promoting 20.3.3 Oxidative damage 285
rhizobacteria as bioremediators 20.3.4 Impact on the photosynthetic
of polluted agricultural soils: system 285
challenges and prospects 265 20.3.5 Impact on reproductive tissue 286
20.3.6 Effects on mineral and nutrients
Abdul Majeed, Zahir Muhammad, uptake 286
Rehman Ullah, Kaleem Ullah, Hazrat Ali and 20.4 Remediation strategies for Cd toxicity 286
Naila Inayat 20.4.1 Phytoremediation 286
18.1 Introduction 265 20.4.2 Phytoremediation of cadmium-
18.2 The general significance of plant contaminated soil 288
growth-promoting rhizobacteria 266 20.4.3 Microbial remediation 290
18.3 Rhizobacteria (plant growth-promoting 20.5 Conclusion and future perspectives 291
rhizobacteria) as bioremediators of References 292
polluted soil 267
18.4 Mechanism of plant growth-promoting
rhizobacteria-assisted phytoremediation 267 21. The efficiency of arbuscular
18.5 Biodegradation 270 mycorrhizal fungi on sequestration
18.6 Phytoextraction 270 of potentially toxic elements in soil 297
18.7 Phytostabilization 270 Zahra Gerami, Arash Hemati,
18.8 Challenges and prospects 271 Ehsan Mofidi Chelan, Zahra Kazemi,
18.9 Conclusion 271 Ebrahim Moghiseh, Tariq Aftab,
References 272 Behnam Asgari Lajayer and Tess Astatkie

19. Bacterial polyamines: a key 21.1 Introduction 297

mediator to combat stress 21.2 Potentially toxic elements 298
21.3 Mycorrhiza 298
tolerance in plants 277
21.3.1 Types of mycorrhiza 298
Ayesha Sadiqa, Bisma Shahzadi and 21.3.2 Arbuscular mycorrhizae 300
Muhammad Faisal 21.3.3 Arbuscular mycorrhizal
classification 300
19.1 Introduction 277
21.3.4 Arbuscular mycorrhizal
19.2 Biosynthesis of polyamines 277
structures 300
19.3 Regulatory functions of polyamines 278
21.3.5 The importance of mycorrhizal
19.4 Strategies of bacterial polyamines to
coexistence 301
combat stress 278
21.3.6 Factors affecting mycorrhizal
References 280
coexistence 301
21.3.7 The concentration of nutrients
20. Plants and microbes assisted in the soil 301
remediation of cadmium- 21.3.8 The importance of arbuscular
contaminated soil 283 mycorrhizae in soil-plant
relationships 301
Neha Verma, Ritu Gill, Kanu Priya and Anil Kumar
21.3.9 The role of arbuscular
20.1 Introduction 283 mycorrhizae in the transport of
20.2 Cadmium uptake and transport in plants 283 potentially toxic elements 302
20.2.1 Cadmium uptake by roots 283 21.3.10 The role of arbuscular mycorrhizae
20.2.2 Xylem loading and translocation 284 in cadmium transport 302
20.2.3 Phloem transport 284 21.3.11 Arbuscular mycorrhizal solutions
20.2.4 Factors controlling the cadmium in the stabilization of potentially
uptake 284 toxic elements 302
 Contents xi

21.3.12 The effect of potentially toxic 23.5 Polymer-based nanoparticles for the
elements on arbuscular elimination of waste materials 331
mycorrhizal activity 304 23.6 Metal and metal oxide-based
21.4 Glomalin 304 nanoparticles 333
21.5 Conclusion and future perspective 305 23.7 Economic importance of
References 305 nanotechnology 336
23.8 Conclusion and future perspective 336
Acknowledgments 337
References 337
Section F
Management and remediation of 24. Genomic approaches for
hazardous and trace materials phytoremediation of trace and
hazardous metals 341
22. Biomonitoring of heavy metals Deepu Pandita and
contamination in soil ecosystem 313 Ramachandra Reddy Pamuru

Geetanjali Sageena, Kavita Khatana and 24.1 Introduction 341

Jitendra K. Nagar 24.2 Mechanisms of metal uptake,
accumulation and exclusion 342
22.1 Introduction 313
24.3 Genetic engineering for metal
22.1.1 Overview of heavy metals 314
tolerance/accumulation 343
22.1.2 Heavy metals interactions 314
24.3.1 Metallothioneins and
22.1.3 Heavy metals detoxification
phytochelatins 343
mechanisms 314
24.3.2 Metal transporters 344
22.1.4 Biomonitoring using biosensors 315
24.3.3 Modification of metabolic
22.1.5 Plants used as biosensors 315
pathways 346
22.2 Conclusion 319
24.3.4 Alteration of oxidative stress
References 320
mechanisms 346
24.3.5 Alteration in roots 347
23. Role of nanoparticles in remediation 24.3.6 Alteration in biomass 347
of environmental contaminants 327 24.4 Genetically engineered plants in
Ankur Singh and Aryadeep Roychoudhury remediation of trace and hazardous
materials 348
23.1 Introduction 327 24.5 Conclusion 351
23.2 Interaction between nanoparticles and References 351
biotic and abiotic factors 327
23.3 Carbon-based nanoparticles for the Index 359
amelioration of pollutants 328
23.4 Silica-based nanomaterials for the
removal of environmental contaminants 329
This page intentionally left blank
List of contributors
Tariq Aftab Plant Physiology Section, Department of
Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar
Pradesh, India
Niraj Agarwala Department of Botany, Gauhati
University, Guwahati, Assam, India
Imran Ahmad Department of Horticulture, The
University of Agriculture, Peshawar, Pakistan
Muhammad Ahsan Department of Horticultural
Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture & Environment, The
Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur,
Pakistan
Hazrat Ali Department of Botany, University of
Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Abid Ali Ansari Department of Biology, Faculty of
Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
Behnam Asgari Lajayer Department of Soil Science,
Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz,
Iran
Tess Astatkie Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie
University, Truro, NS, Canada
Pooja Moni Baruah Department of Botany, Gauhati
University, Guwahati, Assam, India
Gabriel Bası́lico Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales
“Bernardino Rivadavia” – Consejo Nacional de
Investigaciones Cientı́ficas y Técnicas, Ciudad
Autónoma de Buenos Aires (CABA), Argentina
Zahra Biglari Quchan Atigh Department of
Environment, Faculty of Natural Resource and
Environment, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad,
Mashhad, Iran
Nar Singh Chauhan Department of Biochemistry,
Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India
Kankan Datta Post-Graduate Department of
Biotechnology, St. Xavier’s College (Autonomous),
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Laura de Cabo Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales
“Bernardino Rivadavia” – Consejo Nacional de
Investigaciones Cientı́ficas y Técnicas, Ciudad
Autónoma de Buenos Aires (CABA), Argentina
Nasser Delangiz Department of Plant Breeding and
Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of
Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
Neha Dogra Department of Botany, Punjabi University,
Patiala, Punjab, India
Muhammad Faisal Institute of Microbiology and
Molecular Genetics, Quaid-e-Azam Campus,
University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
Zahra Gerami Department of Soil Science, Faculty of
Agriculture, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad,
Mashhad, Iran
Mahesh R. Ghule Department of Research and
Development, Vasumitra Life Energies Pvt. Ltd.,
Pune, Maharashtra, India
Ritu Gill Centre for Biotechnology, Maharshi Dayanand
University, Rohtak, Haryana, India
Sarvajeet Singh Gill Centre for Biotechnology, Maharshi
Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India
Arash Hemati Department of Soil Science, Faculty of
Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
Gabriela Iglesias Laboratorio de Bioindicadores y
Remediación, Facultad de Ingenierı́a, Universidad de
Flores, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (CABA),
Argentina
Muhammad Ijaz College of Agriculture, Bahauddin
Zakariya University, Bahadur sub-campus Layyah,
Punjab, Pakistan
Naila Inayat Department of Botany, University of
Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,
Pakistan
Valeria Ionno Laboratorio de Bioindicadores y
Remediación, Facultad de Ingenierı́a, Universidad de
Flores, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires (CABA),
Argentina
Shamiya Jahan Department of Plant Physiology,
College of Basic Sciences and Humanities, G. B. Pant
University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar,
Uttarakhand, India
xiii
xiv List of contributors
Moazzam Jamil Department of Soil Sciences, Faculty of
Agriculture & Environment, The Islamia University of
Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur, Pakistan
Gurvarinder Kaur Department of Botany, Punjabi
University, Patiala, Punjab, India
Shruti Kaushik Department of Botany, Punjabi
University, Patiala, Punjab, India
Zahra Kazemi Department of Soil Science, Faculty of
Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
Chetan Keswani Academy of Biology and
Biotechnology, Southern Federal University, Rostov-
on-Don, Russia
Kavita Khatana Department of Applied Sciences and
Humanities, IIMT College of Polytechnic, Greater
Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Masoumeh Kordi Department of Plant Sciences and
Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences &
Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran
Anil Kumar Centre for Medical Biotechnology,
Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana,
India
Isha Madaan Department of Botany, Punjabi University,
Patiala, Punjab, India
Abdul Majeed Department of Botany, Government
Degree College Pabbi Nowshera, Nowshera, Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Ehsan Mofidi Chelan Department of Animal Biology,
Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Tabriz,
Tabriz, Iran
Ebrahim Moghiseh Nuclear Agriculture Research
School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research
Institute, Karaj, Iran
Mohammad Mosaferi Health and Environment
Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical
Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
Zahir Muhammad Department of Botany, University of
Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
M. Naeem Plant Physiology Section, Department of
Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar
Pradesh, India
Muhammad Nafees Department of Horticultural
Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture & Environment, The
Islamia University of Bahawalpur, Bahawalpur,
Pakistan
Jitendra K. Nagar Department of Environmental
Studies, Bhim Rao Ambedkar College, University of
Delhi, New Delhi, New Delhi, India
Bouzid Nedjimi Laboratory of Exploration and
Valorization of Steppe Ecosystem, Faculty of Science
of Nature and Life, Ziane Achour University of
Djelfa, Cité Aı́n Chih, Djelfa, Algeria
Khatereh Nobaharan Browns Avenue, Ringwood,
Melbourne, VIC, Australia
Melisa S. Olivelli Instituto de Investigación e Ingenierı́a
Ambiental-IIIA, Universidad Nacional de San Martı́n,
3iA, Campus Miguelete – Consejo Nacional de
Investigaciones Cientı́ficas y Técnicas, San Martı́n,
Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina
Ramachandra Reddy Pamuru Department of
Biochemistry, Yogi Vemana University, Kadapa,
Andhra Pradesh, India
Deepu Pandita Government Department of School
Education, Jammu, Jammu and Kashmir, India
Aparna Pareek Department of Botany, University of
Rajasthan, Jaipur, India
Rukhsar Parwez Plant Physiology Section, Department
of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar
Pradesh, India
Kanu Priya Department of Life Sciences, Sharda
University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India
Farhan Rafiq College of Agriculture, Bahauddin
Zakariya University, Bahadur sub-campus Layyah,
Punjab, Pakistan
Purushottam K. Ramteke Department of Botany, Raja
Shripatrao Bhagawantrao Mahavidyalaya, Aundh,
Dist-Satara, Maharashtra, India
Rajiv Ranjan Plant Molecular Biology Lab, Department
of Botany, Dayalbagh Educational Institute
(Deemed University), Dayalbagh, Agra, Uttar Pradesh,
India
Sheela Rautela Department of Plant Physiology, College
of Basic Sciences and Humanities, G. B. Pant
University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar,
Uttarakhand, India
Dipanjali Ray Department of Botany, Gauhati
University, Guwahati, Assam, India
Muhammad Ammar Raza College of Food Science and
Biotechnology, Key Laboratory of Fruits and
Vegetables, Zhejiang Gongshang University,
Hangzhou, P.R. China
Anees Ur Rehman Department of Agronomy, University
of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan
Aryadeep Roychoudhury Post-Graduate Department of
Biotechnology, St. Xavier’s College (Autonomous),
Kolkata, West Bengal, India

Ayesha Sadiqa Institute of Microbiology and Molecular
Genetics, Quaid-e-Azam Campus, University of the
Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
Geetanjali Sageena Department of Environmental
Studies, Keshav Mahavidyalaya, University of Delhi,
New Delhi, New Delhi, India
Robab Salami Department of Plant Sciences and
Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences &
Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran
Abdul Sattar College of Agriculture, Bahauddin
Zakariya University, Bahadur sub-campus Layyah,
Punjab, Pakistan
Muhammad Shahid Department of Bioinformatics and
Biotechnology, Government College University,
Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan
Bisma Shahzadi Institute of Microbiology and
Molecular Genetics, Quaid-e-Azam Campus,
University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan
Ahmad Sher College of Agriculture, Bahauddin
Zakariya University, Bahadur sub-campus Layyah,
Punjab, Pakistan
Anmol Sidhu Department of Botany, Punjabi University,
Patiala, Punjab, India
Ankur Singh Post-Graduate Department of
Biotechnology, St. Xavier’s College (Autonomous),
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
List of contributors xv
Ayushi Singh Plant Molecular Biology Lab, Department
of Botany, Dayalbagh Educational Institute (Deemed
University), Dayalbagh, Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India
Geetika Sirhindi Department of Botany, Punjabi
University, Patiala, Punjab, India
Saloni Soni Department of Botany, University of
Rajasthan, Jaipur, India
Parul Tyagi Plant Molecular Biology Lab, Department
of Botany, Dayalbagh Educational Institute
(Deemed University), Dayalbagh, Agra, Uttar Pradesh,
India
Sami Ul-Allah College of Agriculture, Bahauddin
Zakariya University, Bahadur sub-campus Layyah,
Punjab, Pakistan
Kaleem Ullah Department of Botany, Government
Degree College Pabbi Nowshera, Nowshera, Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Rehman Ullah Department of Botany, University of
Peshawar, Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Neha Verma Department of Botany, Baba Mastnath
University, Rohtak, Haryana, India
Monika Yadav Department of Biochemistry, Maharshi
Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India
Adnan Younis Institute of Horticultural Sciences,
University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Faisalabad,
Pakistan
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Foreword

My whole research career has been dedicated to pursuing active research in plant biology and good books always have
been a great tool in understating the basic concepts of research. I read the book, Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil
and Plants: Sources, Effects, and Management and it is a great contribution to the field of soil science and provides a
wealth of detail about hazardous metals in soil impeding the crop productivity and sustainability as well as threatening
the human health.
The editors M. Naeem, Tariq Aftab, Abid Ali Ansari, Sarvajeet Singh Gill, and Anca Macovei did a commanding
job to compile a comprehensive volume on the very important and challenging area Hazardous and Trace Materials in
Soil and Plants: Sources, Effects, and Management. Soil, being a “universal sink”, bears the greatest burden of environ-
mental pollution. The basis of agriculture is soil. All crops for human food and animal feed depend upon it.
Anthropogenic activities add several toxic metals at extraordinarily high concentrations in soils, plants, animals, and
water bodies all across the world. Toxic metals like zinc, lead, aluminum, cadmium, nickel, manganese, arsenic,
and iron pollute both surface and underground water, soil, and food, altering biological function, endocrine systems,
and growth. Besides these elements, the soil can also be contaminated with biological contaminants like zooplankton,
bacteria, viruses, fungi, insect pupae, rotifers, and protozoa, which can be controlled through biological and biotechno-
logical tools. On the other hand, plant growth-promoting bacteria, rhizobia, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus can be
widely applied in the remediation of contaminated soils. Rhizobacteria are known for supporting plant growth in con-
taminated soils. Cadmium is a ubiquitously available toxic heavy metal in the Earth’s crust and does not have any bene-
ficial role in the plant system. Its remediation can be managed by the interaction between plant and microbes, and
mycorrhizal fungus is important for sequestering the toxic elements.
Phytohormone supplementation approaches are gaining attention for protecting crop plants from a stressful environ-
ment and are safer for humans. Phytohormone application effectively protects the plant during the metal-mediated stress
by upregulating the detoxification and sequestration mechanism while promoting the antioxidative system. Waste from
pharmaceutical industries is a nuisance in every country and can be removed by conventional and unconventional meth-
ods such as activated sludge, membrane bioreactors, aerobic, anaerobic, microalgae, and fungal bioreactors, trickling
filters, denitrification, nitrification, and biosorption, and constructed wetlands. Nonstop anthropogenic and geological
activities add toxic elements to soils that are endangering the health of living organisms. The conjunction of plants and
microbes has proven to be the most efficient approach that ensures the clean-up of the polluted soils. Heavy metals like
zinc, nickel, copper, and chromium when present in low amounts are essential for plant metabolic pathways and
become toxic only at higher concentrations. However, some others like Hg, Pb, As, and Cd (same as the above com-
ment) are nonessential and toxic even at low concentrations. Two chapters discuss the molecular basis of heavy metal
response and their various toxicity alleviation methods and the responses of plants produced against heavy metals.
The higher amount of selenium present in soil can be hazardous for plant growth. Therefore it is important to study
the effects of Se on plants and soils and how it can be managed by biofortification and the phytoremediation process.
Higher aluminum concentrations in tea plants can cause toxicity that can be reduced by using exogenous applications
of lime, phosphorus, magnesium, and other minerals. Arsenic imparts cellular toxicity and affects plant growth and
yield by affecting various physiological processes. Taking the lead from microorganisms, which are continuously
exposed to the toxic concentration of arsenic and thus have evolved various physiological processes to resist arsenic-
induced toxicity. Some of these processes could be utilized for arsenic bioremediation/bioaccumulation for plants too.
Halophytes are characterized by their aptitude to grow and reproduce in saline soils that are unsuitable to support the
growth of most of the other crop species. This chapter highlights the importance of haptophytes plants that can be culti-
vated in saline soils for fodder use without risking animal health. One unique chapter also addresses the concerns
related to Sediment pollution in aquatic environments of the metropolitan region. Based on the analyzed works, some
alternatives are proposed for the management and remediation of contaminated sediments. The last three chapters high-
light the importance of using modem tools for biomonitoring of heavy metals contamination in the soil ecosystem,

xvii
xviii Foreword

application of nanoparticles in remediation, and genomic approaches for the phytoremediation of trace and hazardous
materials.
The creative writing and consolidated information provided in this book about the uptake of heavy metals by plants
and subsequent accumulation along the food chain as a potential threat to animal and human health should help in miti-
gating these issues from the environment.
The challenges of hazardous and trace materials in soil and plants are visible and I heartily appreciate the editors
and contributing authors’ dedication to discussing the impact of hazardous and trace materials in soil and plants.

Shashi Rhode
Microbial Engineering, Integrative Biology Group, International Centre for
Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, New Delhi, India
Preface

Anthropogenic and geological contamination of the environment due to hazardous and trace materials has posed a seri-
ous threat to agricultural land as well as to human health. Researchers have observed that a considerable number of haz-
ardous elements in the environment has increased dramatically over the last few decades. Various trace elements,
metals, metalloids, and other toxic substances are continuously polluting water, agricultural soil, food, and significantly
altering the biological food chain. Environmental pollution due to hazardous and trace materials has now been consid-
ered a global issue of concern, with severe repercussions for the environment, plants, animals, and human health.
Additionally, trace elements also have hazardous effects on agricultural soil and plants, therefore imposing maximum
admissible restrictions on their concentrations in soil by governments and nongovernment organizations. Agriculture
environment receiving trace elements through the air, primarily in industrial areas, including diverse plants, power sta-
tions, mining plants, and transportation networks of trace elements. In most developing countries the bulk of hazardous
elements is the result of industry and inadequate effluent treatment and management. The main sources of contamina-
tion in soil-crop systems in developed countries are the deposition of particulate matter on food crops and the use of
industrial effluents and sewage sludge as fertilizers. In contrast, in developing countries, untreated sewage or sludge
irrigation is the most common way for soil contamination. There are various conventional and unconventional remedial
strategies that have proved effective to improve soil and crop productivity. Soil washing, soil repair, solidifications, sta-
bilization, excavation, and electroremediation, which have been explored in both field and controlled environment, are
some of the important strategies of soil remediation. Environmentally friendly and cost-effective biological remediation
techniques like phytoremediation and PGPR are offered for moderately contaminated soils. Plant growth-promoting
bacteria (PGPR), rhizobia, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AM), phytohormone applications are effectively used in the
amelioration of contaminated soils. On the other hand, the application of plant growth regulators, mineral nutrients,
nanoparticles is relatively cost-effective and eco-friendly.
Current remedial measures are aimed to lower the concentrations of hazardous materials and trace elements in soil
and the food chain to reduce health risks. To restrict metal contaminants from entering the food chain and to develop
remediation procedures that are effective, rapid, and precise mapping of soil pollution is the need of the hour.
Editors intend to bring forth a comprehensive volume “Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil and Plants: Sources,
Effects, and Management” highlighting the various prospects that are being involved in the current scenario. This book
consists of 24 chapters categorized in different sections, written by global research experts. We are hopeful that this
comprehensive volume would furnish the need of all researchers who are working or have great interest in this particu-
lar field. We are highly thankful to the Academic Press, Elsevier, USA, Inc., for compiling this scientific task. Heartfelt
thanks are expressed to the team members (Nancy Maragioglio, Catherine Costello, and others) for their dedication, sin-
cerity, and friendly cooperation in producing this volume.
With great pleasure, we extend our sincere thanks to all the esteemed contributors for their timely response, their
outstanding and up-to-date research contribution, and their support and consistent patience.
Lastly, thanks are also due to wellwishers, friends, and family members for their moral support, blessings, and inspi-
ration in the compilation of this book.
M. Naeem1, Tariq Aftab1, Abid Ali Ansari2, Sarvajeet Singh Gill3 and Anca Macovei4
1
Plant Physiology Section, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India,
2
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, 3Centre for Biotechnology,
Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana, India, 4University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

xix
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Section A

Overview of hazardous and

trace materials in soil, plants &
environment
This page intentionally left blank
Chapter 1

An overview of the hazardous and trace

materials in soil and plants
Abid Ali Ansari1, Sarvajeet Singh Gill2, Tariq Aftab3, Rukhsar Parwez3, Ritu Gill2 and M. Naeem3
1
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia, 2Centre for Biotechnology, Maharshi Dayanand University,
Rohtak, Haryana, India, 3Plant Physiology Section, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India

1.1 Introduction
Soil plays an important role in the biosphere and is important for food production and a sustainable environment. A reg-
ular increase in population, scientific, and technical advancements are the major environmental issues of the globe;
environmental pollution and perturbations in the soil ecosystems are the results (Saghafi, Bagherifam, Hatami, &
AsgariLajayer, 2020). Therefore, there is a need to be aware of the potential soil contaminants and to pay more atten-
tion to the appropriate solutions for their management. Various physical, chemical, and biological methods have been
applied for the purification of the soil from these potentially toxic elements (PTEs), degrading the physical and chemi-
cal structures and vital activities of the soil resulting in a marked reduction in crop productivity (Heidarpour,
Aliasgharzad, Khoshmanzar, Khoshru, & AsgariLajayer, 2019). Appropriate, natural, cost-effective, and on-site biologi-
cal methods need to be developed and applied appropriately to protect the soil quality. Among all, phytoremediation is
one of the most recommended and acceptable methods to remove and deactivate the metals from the contaminated
soils. Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPR), rhizobia, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AM) are widely applied in
the remediation of contaminated soils (Kazemalilou, Delangiz, AsgariLajayer, & Ghorbanpour, 2020).
Chapter 2 (Salami et al.) presents the information on the sources, consequences, and control measures of various
biological contaminants in the environment. Zooplankton, bacteria, viruses, fungi, insect pupae, rotifers, and protozoa
are the major biological contaminants in the environment. Since these microorganisms can contaminate water, air, food,
etc., their characteristics and behavior are important to study (Carraturo et al., 2020). Management strategies of biologi-
cal contaminants such as filtering and chemical and biological treatments need to be discussed. Biotechnology is always
a promising technology to control biological contaminants (Price & Wildeboer, 2017). Trace elements, which naturally
occur in soil are vital nutrients for plant, human and animal health. However, these trace elements can be potentially
dangerous in higher concentrations and are a potential threat to environmental health (Tabassum et al., 2019). Chapter 3
by Rafiq et al., elaborates the long-term challenges, the characteristics, and behavior of various hazardous materials and
trace elements in the soil. The chapter provides information on the sources, effects, and remedial measures of the soil
contaminated with trace elements.
In the following Chapter 4, the authors described the effect of selenium on soils and plants and its management. It
summarizes the cycling of selenium in plants to soil and soil to plants and its effects during its cycling. Selenium is
inadequate for fulfilling animal and human requirements in a lot of geographic areas. In this chapter, the authors sum-
marized the various effects of Se on plants and soils and how its effect can be managed by biofortification and phytore-
mediation process (Wallace et al., 2009). The basis of agriculture is soil and source of human food and animal feed.
But the waste products, sludge, waste treatment plants are polluting water and soil. In order to preserve the soil quality,
fertility and productivity, control measures are needed to be taken in a herculean manner. Chapters 5, 6, and 7 by Soni
and Pareek, Verma et al., and Younis, respectively are also elaborate on the soil contamination with heavy metals, asso-
ciated risk, and the strategies for their management and remediation.
Chapter 8 by Lajayer et al. is focusing on some emerging pollutants in the soil environment such as pharmaceuticals
and personal care products (PPCPs). With the increase in population and health awareness, the production and

Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil and Plants. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-91632-5.00016-1

© 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 3
4 SECTION | A Overview of hazardous and trace materials in soil, plants & environment

consumption of PPCPs is increasing day by day and are newly introduced pollutants in the environment (Belhaj et al.,
2015). A diverse group of drugs used in veterinary medicine, agriculture practices, cosmetics, and human health, such
as analgesics, antibiotics, hormones, etc. is considered as the emerging pollutants. They are regularly discharged into
rivers, lakes, groundwater, and even drinking water resources (He, Wang, Ye, Zhang, & Yu, 2014). The utilization of
microorganisms’ potential (algae, fungi, and bacteria) to biodegrade these pollutants is one of the most cost-effective
technologies. Various conventional and unconventional methods such as activated sludge (Buttiglieri & Knepper,
2008), membrane bioreactors, aerobic, anaerobic, microalgae and fungal bioreactors (Ahmad et al., 2017), trickling fil-
ters (Lin, Yu, & Lateef, 2009), nitrification, and denitrification (Phan et al., 2014; Silva et al., 2013), biosorption
(Banihashemi & Droste, 2014) and constructed wetlands (AsgariLajayer, Najafi, Moghiseh, Mosaferi, & Hadian, 2018,
2019) are some of the common practices.
Chapter 9 by Bası́lico et al. is based on a report on sediment pollution in aquatic environments of the metropolitan
region of Buenos Aires (MRBA), Argentina. Sediment pollution is a very frequent situation in aquatic environments in
urban-industrial areas around the world. In this study the authors have highlighted the several investigations carried out
on the pollution of sediments in the MRBA in the last decades, revealing that the contamination was associated with
the discharge of liquid effluents and urban runoff (Kumar et al., 2017). The basins of Luján, Reconquista, and Matanza-
Riachuelo rivers, the largest in the MRBA, showed a notable deterioration of sediment. Based on the observations,
some alternative measures are proposed for the management and remediation of contaminated sediments (Bası́lico,
2021).
Environment contamination is a global issue. Various pollutants generated from industries and anthropogenic
sources are cycled through the environment, soil, water plants, and animal through the food chain, eventually harming
humans (Shtangeeva, Laiho, Kahelin, & Gobran, 2004). An increase in mining activities is one of the major causes
(Xiao, 2017). Heavy metal pollution has raised the alarm has been considered a severe health issue, increasing concen-
trations in soils, plants, animals, and water bodies all over the world. Toxic metals namely zinc, lead, aluminum, cad-
mium, nickel, manganese, arsenic, and iron are the major hazardous elements in water, soil, and food, altering the
biological systems, growth, and functions (Cho-Ruk, Kurukote, Supprung, & Vetayasuporn, 2006).
Chapter 10 by Singh et al., discussed the sources, effects, and management of the hazardous elements in plants.
Chapter 11 by Nedjimi focuses on the importance of halophytes (Amaranthaceae) in bioaccumulation and translocation
of some trace elements in the environment. Trace elements important for the plant growth and development, participat-
ing in various metabolic and biochemical activities of the plants. But increase in their concentration results in cellular
damage, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, and disturbance of various metabolic processes (Kabata-Pendias,
2011; Nedjimi, 2021). Halophytes are a well-known species for their potential to adapt to the saline soil environment.
They grow and reproduce comfortably in the saline soils which is unfavorable to various other species (Nedjimi &
Daoud, 2009; Wu, Liu, Zhao, & Yu, 2012). This chapter provides updated information on the ability of some endemic
halophytic species of Suaedamollis and Traganum nudatum to uptake trace elements from saline soils and translocate
them to their aerial parts. The review highlights that these plants can also be used as potential fodder plants without any
animal health risk.
Chapter 12 by Parwez et al., elaborates the significance of medicinal leguminous crops for their potential to accumu-
late and tolerate the higher concentrations of heavy metals in their body tissues. With the advancements, modernization,
industrialization, and urbanization, heavy metal pollution in waters and soils has considerably increased affecting crop
yield and production. Various heavy metals namely Zn, Ni, Cu, Cr, etc. are essential for plant metabolic pathways at
low concentrations but toxic at higher concentrations. However, heavy metals such as Mercury (Hg), Lead (Pb),
Arsenic (As) and Cadmium (Cd) are nonessential and toxic even at very low concentrations (Asati, Pichhode, & Nikhil,
2016). Family Fabaceae or Legumenacae is one of the largest families with 700 genera and 20,000 species, widely
being used as food, fodder, and medicine. 88% of legumes form a symbiotic association with nitrogen-fixing
Rhizobium/Bradyrhozobiun in nodules imparting their inherent ability to grow in nitrogen deficit soils and making them
ideal crops for soil reclamation while many legumes produce phytochemicals of pharmaceutical importance conferring
on them medicinal properties (Ivanova & Tsyganov, 2017). This chapter deals with the heavy metal-initiated plant
responses upon key metabolic processes such as seed germination, plant growth, photosynthesis, mineral nutrition, bio-
logical nitrogen fixation, and secondary metabolite production in medicinally important legumes (Naikoo et al., 2019).
Additionally, the molecular basis of heavy metal response and their various toxicity alleviation methods have also been
discussed.
Since the plants cannot move (except some free-floating aquatic plants), they are readily exposed to the heavy
metals (HMs) in the soil which affects the growth and productivity of the plants. HMs cause many morphological, bio-
chemical, physiological, and molecular disturbances in plants, the production of ROS is one of them that hinder various
 An overview of the hazardous and trace materials in soil and plants Chapter | 1 5

biochemical processes essential for plant growth (Kabata-Pendias, 2011; Nedjimi, 2021). Reduced biomass, photosyn-
thetic pigments, photosynthetic efficiency, water use efficiency, mineral nutrition imbalances, chromosomal aberrations,
inhibition of cell divisions, chlorosis, and necrosis are some of the responses when plants are exposed to toxic levels of
HMs. Some of the plants are hyperaccumulators of HMs and utilized in phytoremediation of HMs especially the Pb,
Hg, Cd, Chromium (Cr), As, Copper (Cu), Nickel (Ni), Zinc (Zn) And Iron (Fe) (Silva, Fernandes, Junior, Santos, &
Lobato, 2018).
Chapter 13 by Kaur et al. summarizes the biochemical responses of plants to the soil contaminated with heavy
metals. Arsenic enters the food chain through the plant roots and is transported to various parts through the vascular
system. At the cellular level arsenic imparts toxicity by affecting the metabolism and redox balance. Plant growth and
yield are affected by various physiological processes (Chauhan, Ranjan, & Purohit, 2009). Mitigations strategies for
arsenic need to be developed. Some of these microbiological processes could be utilized for the bioremediation and
bioaccumulation of arsenic from the soil environment (Brar, Verma, & Surampalli, 2006). Chapter 14 by Yadav and
Chauhan summarizes studies on arsenic speciation and distribution, arsenic toxicity in plants, microbial arsenic resis-
tance mechanisms, and their employment for arsenic remediation.
Tea plants (Camellia sinensis) have the potential to grow well and can tolerate toxicity in soils contaminated with
higher concentrations of Aluminum (Al). Al promotes tea plant growth, but at higher concentrations, it induces toxicity.
Al tolerance by tea plants can be utilized to facilitate the removal of Al through the absorption by roots of plants and
accumulation of same in their body tissues (Sun, Zhang, & Liu, 2020). In Chapter 15 of Ray et al., the authors envis-
aged providing a detailed account of Al phytotoxicity, tolerance mechanism, and ways to mitigate Al toxicity in tea
plants.
Chapter 16 by Jahan et al. is focusing on the role of phytohormones in mitigating the harmful impacts of hazardous
and trace materials on agricultural crops. Metal-induced oxidative stress result in ROS synthesis which hampers the
metabolism by the interference of free radicals. Nutrient uptake, hormone homeostasis, and water balance are also col-
lapsed during metal-induced stress (Charkiewicz & Backstrand, 2020). There is a wide range of research reports sug-
gesting that the plant hormones such as Auxin, cytokinins, gibberellins, salicylic acid, and jasmonic acid application
can effectively endure the plant during the metal-mediated stress (Nguyen, Sesin, Kisiala, & Emery, 2021).
Cd is a ubiquitously available toxic heavy metal in the Earth’s crust and does not have any beneficial role in the
plant system. Anthropogenic activities such as mining, industrial disposal are the major sources of Cd pollution in soil
(Nawab et al., 2016). The present Chapter 17 by Datta and Roychoudhury focuses on various sources of Cd contamina-
tion, the mechanism of Cd uptake, and its toxic effects in the plant and soil environment. Some of the applications of
biochar, upregulation of phytochelatin synthase genes and development of transgenics, use of organic manures, and
maintenance of humic to fulvic acid ratio have been discussed and recommended for remediation of Cd from the con-
taminated soils (Sohail et al., 2019).
Chapter 18 by Majeed et al., gives an outline of the significance of PGPR as one of the sustainable methods in the
bioremediation of contaminated agricultural soils. The PGPR has shown several characteristics of improving the soil
quality, minimizing soil degradation, ameliorating the toxic effect of pollutants, and enhancing plants’ growth. Some
PGPR are the promising agents of bioremediation and their utilization as a “greener approach” towards contaminated
soil reclamation (Prakash, 2021). Bacterial polyamines are used for various functions such as “embryogenic compe-
tence, ripening of fruits, formation of biofilm, differentiation of xylem cells and programmed death of cells, etc.” and
played a role to combat stress present in the environment (Silveira et al., 2013). There are different researches on the
use of bacterial polyamines such as regulating biological functions like the proliferation of cells, activities of different
enzymes modulate, stabilize the membranes and balance between cation and anion (Groppa & Benavides, 2008).
Chapter 19 by Siddiqa and Faisal is focusing on the significance of bacterial polyamines (putrescine, spermidine, and
spermine) as a key mediator to combat stress tolerance in plants.
In this Chapter 20 by Verma et al., the author emphasized the plants and microbes-assisted remediation strategies to
neutralize cadmium toxicity in the soil contaminated with Cd which is well known heavy metal that affects the plants
and animal’s health. Cd in plant metabolism and seed germination (de Souza Guilherme, de Oliveira, & da Silva,
2015). Moreover, the application of the plant growth regulators, mineral nutrients, organic manure, compost, and bio-
char could add to the remediation of Cd-contaminated sites (Kalai, Bouthour, Manai, Bettaieb Ben Kaab, & Gouia,
2016). Chapter 21 by Gerami et al., presents the effect of symbiosis with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on the green
treatment of PTEs contaminated soils. The chapter provides information on the ability of mycorrhizal fungi in plant pro-
tection against the PTEs toxicity to various factors such as plant species, type, and race of mycorrhizal fungi, type and
concentration of PTEs, plant growth conditions, soil properties, age, and physiological status of the plants depending on
its root system (Malekzadeh, Aliasgharzad, Majidi, Abdolalizadeh, & Aghebati-Maleki, 2016).
6 SECTION | A Overview of hazardous and trace materials in soil, plants & environment

The objective of Chapter 22 by Sageena and Nagarwas to highlight the impact of heavy metal contaminants, their
relationship with soil ecosystems, and possible solutions to minimize these impacts. Biomonitoring using plant species
at different levels of the biological organization helps in recognizing the environmental changes associated with soil
contamination (Prakash, 2021).
Chapter 23 by Singh and Roychoudhury, explored nanotechnology in combination with bioremediation as the nano-
particles have shown a better efficiency due to their higher surface-area-to-volume ratio that increases the rate of
adsorption on the surface of the nanoparticles (Pandey & Fulekar, 2012). The main objective of this book chapter was
to analyze the nano-remediation applications for the removal of environmental contaminants. The chapter provides an
overview of main groups of nanoparticles, that is, carbon-based (Ren, Chen, Nagatsu, & Wang, 2011), silica-based
Tsai, Chang, Saikia, Wu, and Kao (2016), polymer-based (Zhao et al., 2011) and inorganic nanoparticles which can be
utilized to abrogate the effect of pollutants like heavy metals, dyes, organic compounds, volatile organic compounds,
chlorinated compounds, organophosphorus compounds and halogenated herbicides (Tratnyek & Johnson, 2006).
Chapter 24 by Pandita et al., is focused on the various mechanisms of metal acquisition, accumulation, and exclusion,
genetic engineering for metal tolerance/accumulation. Genomic approaches of clustered regularly interspaced short pal-
indromic repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated (CAS) and microRNAs, genetically engineered plants, and the potential
genes and candidate plants for the phytoremediation of trace and hazardous material tolerance are also highlighted in
this chapter (Zhou, Huang, & Yang, 2008).

1.2 Conclusion
Soil contamination with hazardous and trace metals interferes with biochemical and physiological processes regulating
plant growth. Such stress manifests in form of reduction in biomass, photosynthetic efficiency, water use efficiency,
mineral nutrition imbalances, and impairment of cellular processes causing a toll on crop yield and productivity. A
vivid description of the effect of these toxic heavy metal contaminants on plants reflects how their accumulation in
plant tissue affects secondary metabolite production modulating plants’ medicinal value. Besides, the growth of several
halophytes in the contaminated soils provides interesting results suggesting they act as potent hyperaccumulators of
trace metals effective in lowering the concentration of these metals from soil. The compiled work focuses both on con-
ventional and novel methods for the improvement of soil quality and productivity otherwise degraded by various bio-
logical and chemical contaminants. Various scientific strategies like the use of PGRs, metal hyperaccumulators,
activated sludge, and ecological approaches like biochar, PGPRs, and arbuscular mycorrhiza provide a cost-effective
remedial measure for reclamation of hazardous and trace metal contaminated soils. On the other hand, the use of sophis-
ticated technologies like CRISPER/CAS, microRNA, and genetically engineered nanoparticles further provide insight
on initiating several molecular responses in plants fortifying their native defense mechanisms to grow under stressful
soil conditions facilitating phytoremediation. These observations suggest that these techniques serve as befitting remedi-
ation measures to negate soil contamination effects on crop productivity.

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Chapter 2

Biological contamination and the control

of biological contaminants in the
environment
Robab Salami1, Masoumeh Kordi1, Nasser Delangiz2, Ebrahim Moghiseh3, Behnam Asgari Lajayer4,
Chetan Keswani5 and Tess Astatkie6
1
Department of Plant Sciences and Biotechnology, Faculty of Life Sciences & Biotechnology, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran, Iran, 2Department
of Plant Breeding and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran, 3Nuclear Agriculture Research School, Nuclear
Science and Technology Research Institute, Karaj, Iran, 4Department of Soil Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran,
5
Academy of Biology and Biotechnology, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia, 6Faculty of Agriculture, Dalhousie University, Truro,
NS, Canada

2.1 Introduction
The presence of different organisms such as bacteria, fungi, and viruses affects the health of other organisms such as
humans adversely. These organisms are known as biological contaminants. The contaminating organisms exist in water,
air, foods, etc. Foods are one of the most prominent examples that are affected by biological contamination. This kind
of contamination can easily transfer to our bodies and cause many digestive issues and other problems. Our environ-
ment is one of the other examples that can be contaminated with dangerous agents such as coronavirus. It was reported
that this virus can survive for hours to days in some environments and in an optimized in vitro condition (Carraturo
et al., 2020). So, environmental contamination and educating people about the way of protecting themselves from dan-
gerous biological contaminating agents such as coronavirus is one of the current concerns around the world.
Biotechnology may play an important role to protect us from so many biological contaminations in the world. For
instance, coronavirus is one of the new emerging biological agents and its lethal effect and expansion around the world
can be prevented through biotechnological methods. Nowadays more than 150 vaccine developers are working to
release effective and safe vaccines through biotechnology to prevent the danger of the COVID-19 (Dance, 2020). In
this chapter, we review biological contaminants in different sectors and provide ways to deal with their negative effects
on health.

2.2 Effect of biological contamination

Biological contaminants include zooplankton, bacteria, viruses, fungi, insect pupae, rotifers, and protozoa. These micro-
organisms can contaminate water, air, food, and so on. Some examples of biological contaminants and their effects are
presented in Table 2.1.

2.2.1 Biological contamination of food

Biological contamination is crucial in food industries and restaurants. When someone prepares food for people, the first
factor that needs to be considered is contamination, particularly biological contamination. We can prevent contamina-
tion when we know about these contaminants. Such prevention is important because foods exposed to such organisms
would be contaminated biologically. The foodborne disease (FBD) caused by microbial contamination is a major factor
that spreads the disease (Rahmati, Hosseini, Mahuti Safai, Asgari Lajayer, & Hatami, 2020). In fact, pathogenic
Hazardous and Trace Materials in Soil and Plants. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-91632-5.00010-0
© 2022 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 9
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
and main canals. It will cost around one hundred million dollars, and
it will bring both protection and prosperity to thousands and
thousands of people. That,” he declared, leaning forward, “is what it
means to dam the Colorado.”
“It don’t mean that to us,” Old Jess stated, turning his quid to the
other cheek. “We aim to show ’em something about buildin’ dams.”
He grinned and showed yellow snags of teeth.
“Yeah. Wait till they see how we aim to do it,” snickered Young
Jess. “We’ll be rakin’ in the gold whilst they’re still standin’ around
with their mouths open.”
Peter had fallen into a taciturn, grim mood, staring somber-eyed at
the river. Beside him, Nevada leaned chin upon her cupped palm
and stared also. Several thousand men, working for eight years!
That was as long as the years back to her first sight of the convent
where Peter took her to be educated. Thousands of men working all
that time—thousands! Was it, then, so deceptively vast, that river?
Would the cliffs they had undermined fall in and be swept disdainfully
away? Did it really belong to the government, that river, so that no
man living all his life on its bank might say what should be done with
it? Had Uncle Peter, and Young Jess and her grandfather been
children, playing all these years beside a stream they must not touch
or tamper with?
“It sounds as big as the stars,” she observed vaguely. “As if we
had been waving a handkerchief at Mars, down here by the river,
and then some one comes along and pushes us back and says,
‘Here, here, you must stand back. You are obstructing the view. The
President wants to wave his handkerchief. You annoy him.’ Do you
think,” she flashed at Rawley, “it is going to make any difference to
the river—who dams it first?”
“You don’t get the point,” Rawley protested. “I am not responsible
because the undertaking is so stupendous that it is beyond any
private enterprise. You can’t shoot a lot of rock into the river and call
that a dam. And if you could, you must not. Don’t you see? The
welfare of too many thousands of people are involved. It’s a job for
the government. You can’t take it for granted that, just because you
have lived beside it all your lives, and because it doesn’t seem to
belong to anybody, any more than the clouds belong, that you can
claim it, or even claim the right to do as you please with it. There’s a
right that goes away beyond the individual—”
“The gold down there is ours,” Old Jess cried fiercely. “We own
placer claims on both sides of the river, and the lines run across.
We’ve got a right to placer the gold in the river bed. It’s ours. We got
a right to git it any way we kin! The gov’ment can’t stop us, neither.”
“Oh, yes, it can!” Rawley rashly contradicted. “When you come
down to fine points, the government owns this river. It owns the river
bed and whatever gold is there. By ‘right of eminent domain’, if you
ever heard of that.”
“Right of eminent hell!” Young Jess got up and stood over Rawley
threateningly. “Tell me a bunch uh swell-heads back in Wash’n’ton,
that never seen this river, can set and tell us what we can do an’
what we can’t do? We own claims both sides the river, and we got a
right to what’s in the river. You can’t come here and tell us, this late
day, ’t we got to quit, and lose our time an’ money, because the
gov’ment or somebody wants to build a dam. Hell, we ain’t stoppin’
nobody! They better nobody try an’ stop us, neither!”
 CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“TAKE THIS FIGHTING SQUAW AWAY!”
Never before had Rawley seen Young Jess in a rage. A surly,
ignorant fellow he knew him to be, and not too intelligent. A
dangerous fellow, Rawley believed him; quite capable of killing any
man who thwarted him or roused his fury. But Rawley did not move
or attempt to placate him. He had learned that some natures must
blow up a great storm before they can yield. He hoped that this was
the case with Young Jess.
The old vulture craned his neck forward, his eyes piercingly
malevolent.
“Think I’ve waited fifty year fer that gold, t’ be robbed of it now?
They ain’t no gov’ment on earth can step in an’ take what’s mine! I’ll
blow ’em to hell first! I’ll—”
As once before, when he thought his gold was threatened, Old
Jess ran the full gamut of anathema. Nevada fled from the sound of
his cracked voice shrieking maniacal threats and maledictions. He
shook his fist under Rawley’s nose and stamped his feet and raved.
Young Jess was over-ridden, silenced by the old man’s insane
outburst.
As once before, Peter said absolutely nothing until Old Jess had
reached the zenith of his rage. Then he rose deliberately and without
excitement, took the old man by the collar and headed him toward
the door.
“Go and cool off,” he advised dispassionately. “You old vulture,
you can’t scream any louder than the Eagle. You, too, Jess,” he
added, turning harshly upon his half-brother. “You’re a pretty good
man when it comes to swinging a single-jack, but you’re a damn
poor hand at thinking! This thing is away beyond your depth. You
can’t holler the government down. Get out!”
Young Jess blustered and threatened still, flailing his fists and
mouthing oaths.
 “That’s about all from you,” grated Rawley, stung to action by
some vile threat against the government.
“Is, hey?” Young Jess advanced upon him.
Then Rawley went for him, the blue eyes of the Kings gone black
with fury. The fight, if it could be called that, was short and
undramatic. No tables were overturned, no glass was shattered.
Young Jess aimed a sledge blow at Rawley, got one on the jaw that
spun him so that he faced the other way, and Rawley forthwith
kicked him off the porch. Young Jess rooted gravel, looked over his
shoulder and saw Rawley coming at him again, and started off on all
fours. When he regained his feet he went away, blathering
blasphemy. He was going for his gun,—so he said.
Peter stood looking after Young Jess, his brows pulled together. A
slim figure slipped past him and went straight to Rawley, who was
pulling at his tie, which had gone crooked. She was pale, breathless
with the fear that looked out of her big eyes.
“Oh, you must go—now,” she breathed, clasping her two hands
around his arm. “You think he’s just like any other bully, all bluster.
He’ll kill you, just as sure as you stand here. Grandfather, too. Uncle
Jess will shoot you in the back—oh, anyway! He’s the worst of the
Indian blood; once you rouse him, there’s nothing he’ll stop at! Get
him away, Uncle Peter! It isn’t brave, to stay and be killed. It’s the
worst kind of cowardice; the kind that is afraid to show itself. Uncle
Peter!”
“We’re going, Nevada. I know Young Jess. A rattlesnake’s a
prince alongside him when he’s mad. Son, you should have left him
to me. I can handle him pretty well, no matter how mad he gets.
Come along; he’ll not be above potting you from ambush, Injun
style.”
He left the porch at the farther end, pulling Rawley after him; and
much as Rawley hated the thought of retreat, he was forced to
believe that Nevada and Peter, neither of them timid souls, must
know what they were talking about.
Nevada disappeared, with no word of farewell to Rawley. Young
Jess could be plainly heard bawling at Gladys because his “shells”
had been misplaced.
 Peter chuckled.
“One of the kids shot himself through the hat, a month or so ago,”
he explained his amusement. “Since then the guns are kept
unloaded. Jess is hunting cartridges; God bless Gladys for a poor
housekeeper!”
He still held a firm grip on Rawley’s arm, leading him down the
path to the river. But suddenly, keeping an ear cocked toward the
sounds behind him, he swung away from the trail toward the bluffs.
“He’s found them, from the way things have quieted down, back
there. He’ll be hot on your trail, now—unless Nevada can stop him,
which I doubt. He’s Injun enough to hold women in contempt when it
comes to a show-down. Here.”
He pulled Rawley down between two great, upstanding bowlders
standing black against the stars. Rawley felt a movement of Peter’s
arm, and knew that Peter had pulled a gun from somewhere and
was aiming it across a ridge of rock. Rawley himself could hear
nothing but the crying of the wakened baby in the shack, the yelp of
a kicked dog.
For a long time, it seemed to Rawley, they waited. He could not
hear a sound. But Peter still held his gun leveled across the rock
before them, and Rawley could feel how Peter’s muscles were
tensed for a struggle.
Two greenish lights showed faintly as a star-beam struck the
eyeballs of a dog. A shuffling sound approaching through the weedy
gravel, a sniffling at Peter’s hand. Rawley felt a crimple down his
spine, though he did not think that he was afraid.
A pebble plunked into something close beside him, and the dog
shied off with a faint, staccato yelp. Young Jess, then, was close. A
muttered curse reached the ears of the two between the bowlders.
Immediately afterward, Nevada’s whisper came distinctly.
“I think he’s hidden here, somewhere in the rocks. His car is down
in the canyon, but he wouldn’t go that way—he’d expect you to
follow. Watch the dog. He hasn’t any gun—I know. Can you creep
back toward the hill—”
“Sh-sh. You call him. Quiet, as if you was scared. Make out you’re
sweet on him—”
 “I can’t. He knows—I hate him. We quarreled to-day. I hate his
snobbish ways—I told him so.”
“Call his name if you run onto him. Then duck. I’ll—”
“Sh-sh—he may be near!”
The two were standing close together, just beyond the bowlder
that reared its bulk beyond Peter. Rawley bit his lip, straining his ears
to hear more.
“You call him. He won’t s’spect—” Young Jess urged in a whisper.
“He’d be a fool if he didn’t. I tell you he knows—”
“He’s stuck on yuh. That makes a fool—”
“Sh-sh. He’s not—”
Inch by inch, Rawley was drawing himself backward, until now he
was free of the bowlder and Peter. From the sounds, he knew that
the two were standing close to the rock. He thought that they were
facing the river, though he could not be sure. It did not greatly matter.
He inched that way until he could faintly distinguish two upright blots
in the darkness of the bowlder’s shadow.
Upon the taller of the two he launched himself, reaching
instinctively for the gun he knew was there. His hand closed on the
cool steel of the barrel, and he gave a mighty wrench as he went
down. Young Jess, caught unawares from behind, had no chance to
save himself. Rawley landed full on his back, his chest forcing the
face of Young Jess into the gravel. His left hand gripped the back of
Jess’s neck.
“Peter, please take this fighting squaw to the house and lock her
up somewhere. Then come back here. I want to have a talk with you
before I go,” he said hardly. “I can handle this vermin, but I leave the
squaw to you.”
“As you like,” Peter’s voice was noncommittal. “Come, Nevada.”
Rawley had expected some outburst from her, some bitter reply to
his taunt. But she went away with Peter and spoke no word to any
one. So Rawley pulled off his necktie and tied Young Jess’s hands
behind him, and made himself a smoke while he waited Peter’s
return.
“I’ll git you, and I’ll git you right!” gritted Young Jess, when Rawley
had his cigarette going. “You better kill me now, or you’ll see the day
you’ll be begging me to kill yuh. I’ll ketch yuh and take yuh back in
the mine, an’ I’ll—” He amused himself for some minutes, making up
the programme of his revenge. He would finish, he decided, by
building a bed of powder kegs and placing Rawley full length upon it,
with a ten-foot fuse spitted just before Young Jess bade him good-by.
“You ought to have lived fifty years ago,” Rawley commented
indifferently, and blew smoke in his face. “Why don’t yuh squeal for
that old buzzard of a dad? Maybe he could help yuh out, right now.”
Young Jess, having just made up his mind to shout for Old Jess to
come, shut his mouth so hard his teeth clicked like a dog cracking a
bone.
“Any fool can plan the things he’d like to do,” Rawley taunted.
“What counts is the fact that you’re on your back, right now, and that
I put you there—and you with a gun in your hands! I could kick you in
the slats and make you howl like a kicked pup. I could drive your
teeth in, so you’d feed yourself in the back of your head the rest of
your life! Don’t talk to me—about what you’d like to do! I’m liable to
experiment on yuh, just to see how it works.”
Then Peter returned, and further social amenities were postponed
to some future meeting.
 CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“YOU TELL HOOVER I SAID SO!”
Las Vegas awoke one morning to find itself in the public eye.
Destiny had so decreed when it permitted Las Vegas to become the
town nearest to the proposed dam site at Boulder Canyon,—the
largest governmental project undertaken for many a day. The
Panama Canal, said the orators (and no doubt they spoke the truth),
had not cost so much as it would cost to dam the Colorado River, to
conserve its tremendous power, to control its flood waters and put
the river to work tamely watering long rows of cotton, potatoes, great
fields of grain. Long enough had it gone leaping down through the
wildest, most gorgeous scenery in the country. Now it must be
harnessed to new industries and become the servant of plowboys,
the friend of prospectors. It must pull trains across the desert which it
was to transform into tilled farms. It must keep several States vibrant
with the hum of machinery. It must make of the town of Las Vegas a
city worthy the name. One can’t blame Las Vegas for being
particularly interested in that phase of the project.
The town lay fairly under the eye of the Eagle,—and of the sun,
whose light the magic alchemy of the desert transmuted into soft
tints on the mountains, into a faint lavender glow on the desert. The
air was still, with a little nip to it that would later soften to a lazy
warmth. A stranger to the desert, standing on the depot platform,
would have thought that he might walk quite easily to Charleston
Mountains, standing bold and stark against the western sky line.
Down the flag-draped main street, coming from the side door of
the little post-office, a huge, good-natured negro leaned against a
pushcart piled high with dingy, striped canvas mail sacks. When he
passed, certain belated citizens swung out to the edge of the
pavement and took longer steps, knowing that the train was on time,
and that the crowd would already be edging out upon the platform.
Automobiles with flags standing perkily from headlight braces went
careening past, to swing up into the parking space, trying their
nonchalant best to look as if they were not going to hold governors
and high officials of the Federal Government and carry them safely
down to Boulder Canyon, the most popular dam site on the
Colorado.
A group of small boys dressed in white came marching down the
street, stubbing toes over the uneven places because they must
keep their eyes on the music while they played the uncertain strains
of a march. They were very sleek as to hair, very shiny as to cheeks
and very solemn, those boys. Their mothers and their fathers and
their teachers were going to detect any false note or flatted sharp
and tell them about it afterwards. Besides, there aren’t many boys
who ever get a chance to stand on the platform and play when the
Governor’s train comes in—and be the only band on the job. They
felt the deep responsibility attendant upon the honor and thought
feverishly of certain spots in the music where they weren’t quite sure
they could make it; not with the whole town standing around
listening.
They fumbled their instruments, stood hipshot and consciously
unconcerned while they waited for the train. Their leader glanced
around the group, encountered certain anxious pairs of eyes fixed
upon his face, and made an impulsive change in the programme.
“The Star-Spangled Banner” was appropriate and customary for
such occasions, but there were treacherous high notes which a
certain scared boy might play flat, and other places where the slide
trombone was in danger of skidding. He gave them a piece they
could play with their eyes shut and was rewarded by hearing long
sighs of relief here and there among the musicians.
So it happened that when the train had slid into the station and the
Governors and high officials had descended from the private car,
Rawley caught the familiar air, “I’m forever blow-ing bubbles” floating
out over the heads of the assembled citizens of Las Vegas. If the
tune wabbled here and there, what matter? Governors and high
officials can hear better music anywhere,—but they never will hear a
more sincere effort to please, made by more loyal hearts than
skipped beats under the white jackets of the “kid band” of Las Vegas.
 I’m dreaming dreams, I’m scheming schemes,
I’m building castles high—
Rawley caught himself humming the words to himself and
thought, in a heartsick way, of Nevada, only twenty-five miles from
him, so far as miles went,—a million miles away in her thoughts.
“I’ve talked Boulder Canyon Dam until I wonder sometimes if it
isn’t Bubble Canyon, maybe,” a certain governor confided to him
under his breath. “Do you reckon this is a civic confession the kids
are making, or what?”
“The civic air castle—nearest the kids can come to it,” Rawley
grinned. “Wait till you hear this town stand up on its hind legs and tell
you how they feel about it. They talk Boulder Canyon in their sleep, I
reckon. It’s no bubble to this bunch! If the rest of the country had half
the enthusiasm this town has got, they’d be hauling concrete to the
river to-day!”
“Instead of the Commission, huh? Well, I wish they were.”
A man pushed out of the fringe of common citizens who came
merely to look upon assembled greatness and faced Rawley, smiling
with his eyes.
“Uncle Peter!” Rawley gripped his hand and did not know that his
eyes searched the crowd, wistfully, seeking a face—
“No, she didn’t come,” Peter informed him. “I want to get a chance
to talk with the men in your outfit who count the most. Not on paper,
but with the government. Can you fix it for me, boy?”
“Has anything happened?” Rawley drew him anxiously aside.
“No—I just want to get at the right men. I want you there, of
course.” Peter glanced here and there at the men who were smiling,
shaking hands, speaking pleasant phrases.
“All right. Of course every minute is mortgaged, I suppose, to the
town. But I’ll get you—”
“An hour will do me,” Peter stated modestly, and Rawley
suppressed a grin.
Looking him over surreptitiously, Rawley decided that he could be
very proud indeed of Uncle Peter. Even amongst governors and
such, Peter could hold his own with that quiet dignity which nothing
seemed able to ruffle, that poise which came of being very sure of
his own mind and of what he wanted. A great man looked from one
to the other curiously, and Rawley immediately introduced Peter to
him. Then he caught the eye of another, and presently that man was
shaking hands very humanly with Peter Cramer, who looked so
much like George Rawlins King, of the Reclamation Service. Before
he quite realized what was taking place, Peter was absorbed into the
party of great men, and a flustered waitress in the depot dining room
was hastily making room at a table and laying another knife and fork
purloined from the lunch room outside.
The reception committee probably revised at the last minute their
arrangements for seating the party in the decorated automobiles.
Some one must have been crowded; but Peter rode in comfort in a
big car in company with some of the nation’s important men, though
this was not what he had gotten an early haircut for. He had seen the
river in all its moods and under all conditions; it seemed strange to
him now, no doubt, to be sight-seeing it with men who had heretofore
been no more than names to be read in headlines in week-old
newspapers. But no one suspected it,—unless perhaps some
member of the reception committee wondered how he had broken in.
However, as a guest of the Colorado River Commission, seven
governors and railroad presidents, no mere local committee dared
flicker an eyelid.
“It has to be done this way—whatever it is you want to do,”
Rawley muttered once in Peter’s ear at the river, when he caught
Peter looking boredly at the bold cliffs of Boulder Canyon. “You
couldn’t get a look-in, just coming up and trying for an interview. As
soon as we get back, and before the banquet up town, I’ve arranged
for you to talk to the Commission. I told the chief,” he added drily,
“that it was more important than anything else he’d hear. I gambled
on that, because I know you. And a little nerve goes a long way,
sometimes. We’re going to cut this short as possible and get back to
the car early. Then—you’ll have to boil down your hour, Peter. There
won’t be more than half that much time for whatever it is you want to
say.”
“It may pay this Colorado River Commission,” said Peter
laconically, “to miss their supper to-night, and even cut out some of
the speeches they’ve got ready to hand out to Vegas citizens. As I
understand it, the Commission was created for the purpose of
investigating claims, collecting all data and adjusting rights pertaining
to the Colorado River. They’d better take a piece of bread and butter
in their hands and eat it while they listen to what I’ve got to say.” He
paused and added significantly, “You tell Hoover I said so.”
 CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
THE VULTURE MAKES TERMS WITH THE EAGLE
Rawley had them rounded up in the private car—governors and
high officials and newspaper representatives—lighting cigars,
cigarettes and pipes and eyeing, their curiosity politely veiled, the
big, broad-shouldered man with the brown skin and piercing blue
eyes, who stood at one end of the car waiting for them to settle
themselves into easy, listening attitudes. This was informal,—but if
they were to believe that keen young man, George Rawlins King, it
was going to be pretty important; and, what appealed to most of
them like a window opened in a stifling room, fresh and untalked. It is
impossible to eat, sleep and live with one subject for months without
feeling a tingle of relief when some entirely new angle crops up,—
something that hasn’t been argued, weighed and considered a
hundred times. The Colorado River Commission was on the job,—
heart, soul and mind. But that did not preclude secret sighs of
anticipation when the Commission faced something wholly new to
every member.
Not a man among them knew Peter Cramer. Not one had ever
heard the name. He looked a man of the desert, every inch of his
six-feet-and-something-over. He might turn out to be a bore; he did
not look like a boor. He did not wear his hair in the prevailing fad; it
grew thick to the nape of his neck and was trimmed there neatly by
some barber who remembered how they used to cut hair. His dark
suit was incontestably made to his measure,—but it had been made
before the War. You don’t get such material nowadays. At least, men
of the desert do not get it. His hands, as he shuffled a few slips of
paper, showed how hardly they had been used. They were the
hands of a laborer, scrubbed meticulously clean, the nails trimmed
painstakingly,—with a pocket-knife, one could guess. So there he
stood, towering above them all, with pre-War clothes, the hands of a
laborer, the eyes of a thinker.
 The car became very still. Every man there looked at Peter. And
one man’s eyes held love, sympathy and a shade of anxiety. To this
moment, Rawley King could only guess at what his Uncle Peter was
going to say. There was a little prayer in Rawley’s heart, in his eyes.
A modern, young-man prayer, “God, don’t let him pull a boner!” It
would be well if all the prayers in all the churches were as sincere.
“Gentlemen of the Colorado River Commission” (Peter began in
his deep, even voice that carried far) “you do not know me, and I do
not know you. I thank you for consenting to listen to me. When I am
done, you may thank me for consenting with myself to talk to you. In
the words of a certain wise man—whose wisdom I wish I might
borrow as I borrow his words—‘I am not a clever speaker in any way
at all; unless, indeed, by a clever speaker they mean a man who
speaks the truth. You will not hear an elaborate speech dressed up
with words and phrases. I will say to you what I have to say, without
preparation and in the words which come first, for I believe that my
cause is just. So let none of you expect anything else.’ If I could
better that statement, make it more forceful, I should hesitate.
Gentlemen, they stand for absolute honesty of purpose. Let them
stand for me now, as they stood for Socrates—but I hope with
happier effect.
“Fifty-four years ago, I was born within sight and sound of the
Colorado River and within sight of the cliffs of Black Canyon. The
river has been a part of my life. The wilderness hedged me in, mile
upon mile. When I was ten, so long ago as that, I was taught the use
of a rifle that I might help defend lives and property from hostile
Indians and renegade white men. My mother is the granddaughter of
a chief, and the daughter of a Spanish nobleman who voyaged up
from Mexico before white men had seen this country. I am therefore
one-fourth Indian,—a son of the desert. My father was a white man
of good blood.
“When I was a boy and helped in my father’s mine at Black
Canyon, I was urged to greater labor by the great plan my father had
conceived in his long labor at the placer claims. He would save his
gold until he had enough and more than enough. Then, when he had
gold enough, he would dam the flow of the Colorado River and get
the gold that lies in the river bed, washed down through the ages.
 “That plan became the splendid dream of my life, Gentlemen of
the Commission. The stupendousness of the idea took root in my
very soul. I would stand and watch the river hurrying past, and I
would think how best it might be done, and I would picture the river
held back, halted in its headlong course to the sea.
“When I was fifteen I was studying, in a small, groping way, the
engineering feat of damming the river at Black Canyon. I knew that I
had a tremendous problem before me. I knew that the problem was
doubled by the need of secrecy, which had been impressed upon me
from the time I was a child. No one had thought of getting the gold
from the river bed. The river was too swift, its currents too
treacherous. I used to watch the steamboats warp up against the
sweep of that current, to make the landing at El Dorado. That gave
me an idea of the giant strength we should have to combat, to
conquer. No one ever suspected the purpose that grew within the
minds of the ‘squaw man’ Cramer and his breed boys, mining at
Black Canyon. Deliberately we fostered the belief in our
commonplace lives, our lack of ambition, our ignorance. That belief,
gentlemen, was a necessary factor in our ultimate success.
“Studying alone—for my younger brother avoids thinking when
possible, and my father gave himself up wholly to the thought of
getting the gold—I felt the need of help from our great engineers. I
could not take the time for college, for studying in the schools that
turn out engineers. I am a man of the desert, as you see me. What I
know I have learned by reading when others slept. I could not give
my working hours to study, for they were sold to the need of getting
gold to build the dam in order to get more gold! I alone realized the
magnitude of the undertaking; to me they looked for the wit to
accomplish their desire. And I remembered, gentlemen, the
engineering problem solved by half-savage peoples; their power is
gone, but their engineering feats remain to testify for them. I
remembered the pyramids, some of the wonderful old cathedrals of
Europe, the marvelous ruined cities of the Incas, the Aztecs,—I
counted myself a savage who must think for himself, and I went at
the problem of making the splendid dream a reality.
“Gentlemen, when I was yet a boy I was experimenting with
explosives. I was studying the resistance of granite, the lifting power
of black powder; I was preparing to build the dam. Before I had
books on the subject, I had measured so many cubic feet of granite
and had heaved it a certain distance with so many pounds of black
powder. Over and over again I did it, in spare time when I was not
working in the underground placer claims by the river.
“I will be brief, gentlemen, but I want to be understood by each
one of you before I stop talking. I told my father, when I was in my
teens, that we must have a million dollars before we could hope to
carry out his idea. I told him that we must have enough, or lose what
we had. I showed him where failure to dam the river would mean a
total loss of time, money, labor. I convinced him that I knew what I
was talking about. I hope that I can convince you.
“Gentlemen, in order to dam the Colorado River and mine the gold
in its bed, for a distance of, say, a mile or two, you must make sure
first of all of the means, second of the secrecy of your plan, and third
of the practicability of the project. We had placer ground of
unsuspected riches; an underground watercourse with gravel bed,
carrying placer gold. This gave us the means. We simulated poverty
and ignorance and a paucity of ambition, which gave us immunity
from suspicion that we had a secret to keep. And I made it my
business, gentlemen, to study the practical engineering problem.
“I had long ago chosen the spot for the dam; a point in the canyon
where the granite cliffs rise highest. I drew charts—” Peter glanced
toward Rawley, and his eyes twinkled “—of a system of underground
workings which, when filled with black powder augmented by light
charges of dynamite, would break the granite walls and heave them
into the river. I worked upon the principle that it would be better to
use too much than not enough, and for fifteen years—yes, for longer
than that—I have been buying and storing black powder. To-day,
gentlemen, I have in place explosives which, with hush money that I
was compelled to pay for the secret, have cost approximately one
hundred thousand dollars. In place! Wired, tamped with heavy
cement, ready to go. Ready to shoot!”
He looked from face to face, smiling while he waited for the
information to sink in. He saw certain newspaper men poise pencils
before they set down the sum, then scribble furiously.
 “You didn’t know that, did you? No one has told the Colorado
River Commission, until now, when I am telling you, that twenty-five
miles from here, in the cliffs beside the river, there is at this moment
peacefully reposing a giant ready to rise up and fling rocks into the
river, and lie back again when all is done, to watch the Colorado halt
in its headlong rush to the sea! I will be more explicit, gentlemen.
“In the cliffs, ready to shoot—bear that always in mind—I have five
hundred thousand pounds of blasting powder, and fifty thousand
pounds of forty per cent. dynamite, so disposed that, fired
simultaneously on both sides of the river, the volume of rock will
meet midway and drop into the channel. Some distance up the river,
I have an auxiliary dam built, ready to blow at a moment’s notice if
the main dam seems in danger of not holding against the terrific
pressure of the Colorado’s flow.
“Incidentally—I had nearly forgotten to tell you—I have perhaps
the oldest, most complete private record of the flow, rise and fall of
the Colorado River in existence. The record goes back thirty-nine
years, gentlemen. I still use a gauge which I invented when I was
about fifteen, and I find that it is practical, though crude.
“I have planned the auxiliary dam, as I call it, to check and help
hold the pressure against the main dam, if necessary. In flood time
the force is terrific; I have provided against that. The auxiliary dam, if
thrown in, will give me time to strengthen the main dam. I have not
expected that one big blast will end the matter. Once that is in, and
further secrecy impossible, I shall be prepared to rush one hundred
men, whose names and addresses I have on file, to work with
compressors (two on each side of the river, each one portable and
capable of running three drills each—with jack hammers and expert
men behind them). These will rush another system of undermining,
so that a second installment of Black Canyon can be heaved in upon
the first.
“You will bear in mind, gentlemen, that we are first in the field by a
good many laborious years. I grant you that the idea was born in
greed. The eye of the vultures have dwelt upon the gold in the river,
these fifty years. But even the vulture must give way to the Eagle. I
have seen the wing of the Eagle spread, and its shadow has touched
our dam in Black Canyon. Gentlemen, the vulture has come to make
terms with the Eagle.”
That, for reasons best known to the Commission, was applauded.
A great man asked a question.
“How much, approximately, have you spent in this undertaking?”
Peter glanced down at a slip of paper in his hand.
“It is something I have waited to tell you. I divided our capital into
budgets, as follows:
“A dredger, now waiting at Needles to be towed up the river, four
hundred thousand dollars. (That, of course, is our personal property
and need not be considered in our negotiations, if any are carried
on.) Fund for payment of damages to property caused by blasting,
one hundred thousand dollars. (That, I thought, should pay for all the
windows and crockery we may break, and that remains in bank until
such time as we need it.) Property bought along the river above the
dam site, which may be inundated, fifty thousand. Incidental
expenses covering a period of years, fifty thousand. Explosives,
wiring, battery and cement—with hush money paid out—one
hundred thousand dollars.
“The explosives, gentlemen, I should expect the government to
buy, if you take over our dam; which I hope that you will do. I have
no desire now to infringe upon the rights of the government, even if I
could. The project has been my life’s work. The achievement in itself
has been the big dream of my life. If it will be of any service to you, if
your engineers find my idea a practical one, I shall feel that my life
so far has been well-spent. I had an idea that our dredger might still
be used in the river bed to extract the gold. We have claims on both
sides of the river. I have hoped that we might still be able to operate
our dredger, paying a royalty to the government on whatever gold we
may take out. If that is impossible, then we shall be obliged to unload
our dredger for whatever we can get for it.
“Finally, gentlemen, I must urge you to extend your stay in Las
Vegas, so that you may see our dam, and understand more fully
what I have been trying to make plain to you: That we have a dam,
ready to shoot within an hour’s notice—yes, in fifteen minutes from
the time you say the word. I believe that it will hold. You may find
that, by reënforcing it, by building spillways and preparing for your
canals, our dam will be of real, practical benefit to you—put you that
much farther along the trail. Give you something concrete to work to,
something besides politics, talk, theories, factions. It’s there. It’s
ready to speak its little piece to-morrow, if you like—though I am not
so ignorant as to speak seriously of that. I merely wish to point my
information, make it definite. You, or you, or you, could go down to
our place, and if I told you just where I have hidden the battery, you
could hook it up to our wires and dam the Colorado—like that.” He
snapped the fingers he had pointed and stood waiting. And while he
waited, no man in that car did more than breathe, and look at Peter,
and think rapidly, with some consternation, of the significance of his
information.
“Gentlemen, I have finished. I should like to show you the Cramer
Dam, to-morrow. It may upset your schedule, just as I am making
you late for the banquet, which is probably waiting and cooling at this
moment. But, gentlemen, it will pay you to upset your schedule. It will
pay you to take the time and walk the two or three miles between the
nearest road and the dam. Until you do see the Cramer Dam, which I
now publicly announce as being completed, you are not fully
qualified to make your report, if report you must make, to the
Secretary of the Interior, or whoever receives and passes upon your
findings in the matter. Gentlemen, I thank you.”
 CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
FATE HAS DECREED
“I should like to say just here, if I may, that many of the
astonishing facts as Mr. Cramer has placed them before you I can
vouch for from my own personal knowledge.” Rawley was on his
feet, turned toward Peter’s audience. “Just before the war, I was
permitted to look over the work on the Cramer Dam”—privately,
Rawley liked the way Uncle Peter had dignified the dam by giving it a
name which would hereafter identify it to the public—“which at that
time was uncompleted. I did not approve of their project, but I will
say that I was personally in sympathy with it.
“In considering the facts which Mr. Cramer has presented to you, I
am taking the liberty of asking you to bear in mind that I am willing to
vouch for their authenticity. And in explanation of my silence on the
subject, I will say that I went to the Cramers and urged them to
abandon their project, since it would interfere with the reclamation
plans of the government. I did not know, until he stated their position
in the matter just now, what stand they meant to take.”
He sat down, and his chief nodded approvingly. It was perfectly
apparent to Peter that his cause would be none the worse for
Rawley’s championship. He glowed to see how friendly they all were
with Rawley. Also, it surprised his unsophisticated soul to observe
the ease and familiarity with which these men comported
themselves. Headliners in the newspapers, every one of them save
the reporters themselves, he had half expected them to retain their
platform manners in private. They were just men, after all, he
decided, and turned to answer the questions of a great man as
easily as he would have answered Rawley.
The committee of entertainment waited a bit for their guests of
honor, that night. From the manner in which the talk slid into other
and more accustomed channels the moment others entered the car,
Peter gathered that Las Vegas would continue for a time in