BAPRBaltic Phytoremediation Plants treat soil
The project aims to increase the use of green technology in order to decrease
the pollution discharges in the South Baltic area
European Regional Development Fund
Why the project needed?
Environmental pollution by heavy metals (among other harmful particles) has become a serious problem in the Baltic Sea Region.
Unlike organic substances, heavy metals are essentially non-biodegradable and therefore accumulate in the environment.
The accumulation of heavy metals in soils and waters poses a risk to the environmental and human health. Cleanup heavy metals in contaminated soil is therefore utmost necessary in order to minimize their impact on the ecosystems.
Sustainable development
The primary goal of the project is to implement three pilot cases and promote the methods of phytoremediation in the countries located in the south of the Baltic Sea. The wider application of phytoremediation will have a clear and cost effective impact on sustainable development. It will make it possible to remediate a number of contaminated areas around the South Baltic and in other parts of Europe, using plants and organic methods.
3-step process
• a regional strategic and technical analysis
• installation and running of the pilot cases.
• evaluation of the pilot installations and further development of the dissemination of results by having cross-border knowledge exchange seminars
Lead Partners
Linnaeus University Kalmar, Sweden
Financier
Interreg South Baltic Programme 2014–2020
Duration time
1 June 2019–31 May 2022
Lnu/en/bapr
Kalmar GdańsK HelsinGborG Klaipėda
Case studies
3 locations: in Helsingborg, Gdansk and Klaipeda. Each area with different growing conditions, soil pollution and appropriate selected plants for treatment.
In Sweden, Helsingborg, NSR AB
The aim is to reduce the nutrient levels in the Filborna landfill’s protective and plant layers. If successful it will result in reduced pollution in the top soil leachate water so it can be released directly to the recipient. The pilot will also identify a way to utilize the harvested biomass.
Phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia)
Phacelia (Phacelia tanacetifolia) &
Elephant grass (Miscantus gigantus)
In Poland, Zakład Utylizacyjny sp. z o.o. (Gdańsk Municipality Waste Management Facility) in co-operation with Gdańsk University of Technology will evaluate the possibility of phytoextraction from soil of pollutants contained in landfill leakages (e.g. heavy metals, organic pollutants, including PAHs, dioxins or PCBs). Open-field experiments run in parallel with pot cultivation in model conditions using two greenhouses.
In Lithuania, the Lithuanian Research Center for Agriculture and Forestry, Vezaiciai, Klaipeda District Municipality, will evaluate the potential of various plant species to accumulate heavy metals in their biomass by fertilizing them with sewage sludge obtained from Klaipėda city water treatment plants..
Buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum)
View of the pilot case
Three pilot cases with focus on innovative
plant based phytoremediation
technologies and methods for cleaning
polluted soil
Networking
• Linnaeus University, Sweden (lead partner)
• NSR AB, Sweden
• Gdańsk University of Technology, Poland
• Klaipėda University, Lithuania
• Gdańsk Municipal Waste Management, Poland
• Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Lithuania
• Water, waste management and district heating company in Hässleholm, Sweden
• The Swedish Embassy in Warsaw, Poland
• Roskilde University, Denmark
• Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies, Latvia
• IUC Syd, Sweden
