Agricultural Pollution: Toxicology and Remediation Strategies

A special issue of Agronomy (ISSN 2073-4395). This special issue belongs to the section "Soil and Plant Nutrition".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 September 2025 | Viewed by 298

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural & Rural Pollution Abatement and Environmental Safety, College of Natural Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
Interests: microalgae biotechnology; ecotoxicology and bioremediation; agricultural pollutants

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Agricultural & Rural Pollution Abatement and Environmental Safety, College of Natural Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
Interests: soil pollution; ecological restoration

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The agricultural environment is facing a range of issues such as waste pollution, vegetation deterioration, soil and water pollution, and others, as a result of the rapid growth of economies and populations. Heavy metals, pesticides, and other dangerous contaminants, like perfluorinated compounds, nanomaterials, antibiotics, antibiotic resistance genes, and microplastics, have recently garnered a great deal of attention as these problems jeopardize human health and the sustainable growth of communities, in addition to upsetting the ecological balance of these areas. It is now essential to support the rehabilitation of the agricultural environment and implement practical improvements. Furthermore, the need for low-carbon environmental remediation solutions has grown dramatically in light of global warming. We have therefore launched a Special Issue of Agronomy on “Agricultural Pollution: Toxicology and Remediation Strategies” based on the aforementioned circumstances, with an emphasis on:

  • Toxicological study of agricultural environmental pollutants;
  • Research on green and low-carbon remediation technologies for agricultural environmental pollutants;
  • Research on reduction or substitution technologies for chemical fertilizers and pesticides;
  • Research on the resource utilization of agricultural environmental pollutants.

Dr. Hongzhi He
Prof. Dr. Guikui Chen
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • pollution
  • agriculture
  • toxicology
  • remediation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

17 pages, 1626 KiB  
Article
Effectiveness of Biochar on Cd Migration and Bioaccumulation in a Multi-Species Alkaline Fluvo-Aquic Soil System
by Dongqin Li, Changhong Lai, Hongzhi He, Dian Wen, Yiran Cao, Zhichao Wu, Furong Li, Hanzhi Shi, Xu Wang and Guikui Chen
Agronomy 2025, 15(6), 1276; https://doi.org/10.3390/agronomy15061276 - 22 May 2025
Viewed by 74
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) contamination in alkaline soils threatens wheat safety in northern China. This study evaluates biochar’s dual role in Cd remediation and ecological trade-offs using a multi-species soil system (wheat–earthworm–soil). Biochar (Pennisetum hydridum) was applied to Cd-contaminated alkaline fluvo-aquic soils under controlled conditions. [...] Read more.
Cadmium (Cd) contamination in alkaline soils threatens wheat safety in northern China. This study evaluates biochar’s dual role in Cd remediation and ecological trade-offs using a multi-species soil system (wheat–earthworm–soil). Biochar (Pennisetum hydridum) was applied to Cd-contaminated alkaline fluvo-aquic soils under controlled conditions. The results revealed that biochar increased soil pH (8.6–9.6) and reduced CaCl2-extractable Cd by 30–45% in the topsoil (0–20 cm), lowering shoot Cd accumulation in wheat by 42–47%. However, alkaline stress from biochar suppressed wheat biomass by 42%, while earthworm Cd concentrations rose 30–45%, correlating with reduced survival (75% vs. 85–87% in controls). Structural equation modeling identified pH-driven chemisorption as the primary Cd immobilization mechanism, yet biochar amplified ecotoxicity to soil fauna. These findings highlight the need for balanced strategies to optimize biochar’s benefits in alkaline agroecosystems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agricultural Pollution: Toxicology and Remediation Strategies)
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