Use of plant-based sorbents and mycodegradation for the elimination of endocrine disrupting chemicals from soil: A novel facile and low-cost method

Soil contamination is a worldwide emergency that requires prompt, economical and eco-compatible solutions. This work explored an innovative approach consisting of sequential adoption of plant-based adsorbents and mycodegradation to remediate a multi-contaminated soil. Wood biochar (BC) and hydrochar (HC) samples, and spent coffee grounds (CG) were used to remove from the soil two well-known endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), 4-tert-octylphenol (OP) and bisphenol A (BPA), and two suspected EDCs, the fungicide boscalid and the herbicide metribuzin, each at a concentration of 1 mg L−1. The adsorbents were spread on a layer of tissue–non-tissue and overlaid to the soil. After 2, 4 and 7 d of exposure to the polluted soil, the adsorbents were removed. The percentages of OP, BPA, boscalid and metribuzin adsorbed in just 2 d onto BC were, respectively, 80, 62, 34 and 50%. whereas they were lower on HC and much lower on CG. At the two successive times, the amounts of EDCs removed increased, following the same trend OP > BPA > metribuzin > boscalid for all materials and all samplings. The materials removed from the soil after 7 d were inoculated with the fungi Trametes versicolor and Pleurotus eryngii, separately, and incubated for 7 and 14 days. After 7 d, the maximum degradation was observed for OP in any material, being averagely 70 and 74% by T. versicolor and P. eryngii, respectively. After 14 d, averagely, and with slight differences among treatments, P. eryngii degraded 83, 75, 68 and 63% of OP, BPA, boscalid and metribuzin, respectively, while T. versicolor was slightly less effective. Plant assays clearly showed a noticeable reduction of soil phytotoxicity after the remediation treatment with the adsorbents, especially BC. The overall results obtained encourage to study in deep this strategy that allows both the remediation of soil and the elimination of pollutants with a very facile and inexpensive procedure. [Display omitted] •Biochar, hydrochar and spent coffee grounds are effective adsorbents of pollutants.•The proposed method allows the removal of the contaminated adsorbent from the soil.•Endocrine disrupting chemicals can be eliminated using sorption and biodegradation.•The fungi T. versicolor and P. eryngii can degrade some endocrine disruptors.•Plant assays show an abatement of phytotoxicity in soil treated with the adsorbents.