Purification by plants

General principle of the systems of purification by microphytes and macrophytes

Published by Développement Durable the 2008-03-14
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This kind of purification is based on the purifying powder of aquatic plants: seaweed, hydrophyte (open plants) and helophytes (plants in the bank). Waste water stay just in various open ponds covered with these plants. Rushes (or aquatic warbler) and other vigorous plants has been very used for this aim with the name of “macrophytes”. These lasts take the pollutant components dissolved in water, like nitrogen and phosphorus, which constitute a nutritious element for them.

On the other side, they are a coating base for the many microscopic organisms, algae and bacteria, which do most of the work.

Some systems just start the filtration by “mycrophytes” or single-cell algae. Regarding hydrophytes, they absorb the excessive nutrients through its stem cellular walls and its very ramified leaves and they produce the oxygen needed for the organic matter’ rotting and also for the ammoniacal nitrogen oxidation which is harmful for the aquatic environment. Its roll is centred on finished ponds, sometimes neglected.

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