SESSION-10: Remediation Measures
PAPER-5: Exploring Viable Bioremediation Techniques for Restoration of Wetlands
Ahalya N and Ramachandra T.V.

Abstract:

Wetlands are the transitional zones between land and water and are one of the most productive ecosystems in the biosphere and play a significant role in the ecological sustainability of the region. Lakes have played a major role in the history of Bangalore serving as an important drinking and irrigation source. They occupy about 4.8% of the city's geographical area (640 sq. km) covering both urban and non-urban areas. Increasingly, these wetlands are under stress due to pollution from both point and non-point sources. The point sources are the municipal and industrial discharges and the non-point sources include urban and agricultural run-off within a lake's watershed, and the most insidious long-range atmospheric transport of contaminants. In order to ensure the well-being of the environmental, there is a need to restore these degraded ecosystems and adopt suitable conservation and management strategies. The restoration programme would be successful only when it is cost effective and environmentally sound, which could be achieved through bioremediation. This paper explores the viability of using bioremediation and phytoremediation for removal of heavy metals from the wetlands.