Heavy Metals Contamination in Soil and Rice and their Removal Processes: A Brief Review.

In recent years, the increase in pollutants has caused the environment to be exposed to pollution. Heavy metals (HMs) carry irreparable risks due to their accumulation and non-biodegradability. Soil contamination with HMs causes their accumulation in plants and animals and ultimately has irreparable effects on human health. Due to the toxic nature of HMs, very trace amounts of them can cause problems. Improper disposal of waste, sewage, pesticides, automobiles, steelmaking activities, coal mines, and thermal power plants are the main sources of HMs emissions. Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is the staple food of most of the population in many countries. Unfortunately, rice has the ability to accumulate many metals, hence if the rice is contaminated, it can have a negative effect on the health and quality of life of many people. In this study, the contamination of soil and rice with HMs has been investigated. Also, some removal processes (physical, chemical, phytoremediation, and microbial remediation) of HMs from soil have been investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]