Phytoremediation is a plant-based technology that is both cost-effective and environmentally beneficial, and it is classified as an in-situ modification method. Using phytoremediation, on the other hand, results in the restoration of the preservation site's biological activity, physical structure, and chemical properties. Heavy metals can be found in a variety of places in the environment. Because most of these compounds are water soluble, they circulate quickly across the environment. Heavy metals and other pollutants in high concentrations can impair the body's physiology and biochemistry, resulting in health problems. This chapter will review the literature available in different data bases on Cannabis sativa for possible remediation of pollutants from different ecosystems.
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Cannabis sativa is a dioecious flowering plant with male and female reproductive organs on distinct plants (Desanlis, and Cerruti, 2013). Monoecious plants are ones that have both reproductive organs on the same plant. Cannabis sativa flourishes at temperatures ranging from 16 to 27 degrees Celsius (Adesina et al., 2020). This plant is a short-day plant that blossoms in 12 to 14 hours of daylight (Hall et al., 2012). The plants are tall (up to 6 metres) with deep roots (45–90 cm) (Desanlis & Cerruti, 2013). The blooms take 10 to 16 weeks to develop, and during full blossoming, fibre production is at its highest (Amaducci & Gusovius, 2010). Fiber maturation at greater internodes is more advanced at full flowering, and fibre is more homogenous.
The release of various harmful pollutants into the environment, ozone depletion and global warming are some of the most pressing challenges (Mishra et al., 2019). The various heavy metals like Mg, Mo, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, and Ni which are indispensable for the plant growth but harmful to the environment at larger amounts in the soil are examples of inorganic pollutants. Rainwater runoff can leach these metals into nearby areas, causing serious environmental and health risk (Saxena et al., 2019). Metals having uncertain biological functions, such as Cadmium, Chromium, lead, Cobalt, silver, Selenium, and mercury, can accumulate and be hazardous in high doses (Hajar et al., 2018).
Phytoremediation is a low-cost, natural process that employs vegetation to eradicate dangerous pollutants from the soil (Cunningham et al., 1995; Bauddh et al., 2017). Many plants have been investigated and proven to be beneficial in the detoxification of contaminants from the top layer of the soil. On the other hand, most of the plants have been identified as phytoremediators. Withdrawal and throwing away procedures for these plants are not well characterized (Tangahu et al., 2011). Cannabis sativa has been discovered as a hyper accumulator (Linger et al., 2002; Linger et al., 2005; Shi et al., 2009). Metal deposition has been verified in both Cannabis roots and stem tissues in an earlier investigation, with no evident modifications in development of the plants. The technique of accumulation, on the other hand, has remained a mystery. Cannabis sativa is an ideal candidate for phytoremediation experiments because of its short growth cycle, minimal pesticide usage, and low plant care.
Cannabis proponents have long claimed that the plant was employed to assist decrease the harm caused by the tragic Chernobyl nuclear tragedy. The stories turned out to be correct. Cannabis sativa was cultivated in contaminated areas near the Chernobyl site by a team of Russian scientists headed by Ilya Raskin in the 1990s. The researchers sought to explore whether Cannabis sativa could extract heavy metals from the earth in a process known as “phytoremediation,” according to Raskin. According to accounts, the team was successful, and the Cannabis sativa plants were able to cleanse the poisonous soil.