PHYTOMINING

Phytomining is the production of a 'crop' of a metal by growing high-b iomass plants that accumulate high metal concentrations. Some of these plants are natural hyperaccumulators, and in others the property can be induced. Pioneering experiments in this field might lead to a 'gree n' alternative to existing, environmentally destructive, opencast mini ng practices. Phytomining for a range of metals is a real possibility, with the additional potential of the exploitation of ore bodies that it is uneconomic to mine by conventional methods.