Abstract

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Background: The need to develop an ecologically friendly and efficient approach of removing contaminants from polluted soil has been a major area of interest to save the environment. This study was conducted to investigate the effect of Pleurotus ostreatus on the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) and heavy metal concentrations of lubricating oil-amended soil. The white-rot fungus pre-grown on saw dust was investigated for its potential to remediate polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and accumulate heavy metals in 20 % (v/v) unused and used lubricating oil-amended soil after 30, 60 and 90 days of incubation at 280C. Results obtained revealed an overall reduction of 69.52 % and 85.59 % PAH in treatment 1 and treatment 2 accordingly. There was also an overall reduction in heavy metal concentrations of the different heavy metals analyzed. Lead(Pb) reduced by 91.92 % and 63.45 %, zinc(Zn) reduced by 67.11 % and 70.08 %, copper(Cu) reduced by 49.58 % and 62.01 % while iron(Fe) also reduced by 62.42 % and 64.07 % after 90 days of incubation with P. ostreatus for treatment 1 and treatment 2 respectively. The significant reduction in the concentration of PAH and heavy metals over the time of incubation with Pleurotus ostreatus indicates that effective mycoremediation could be achieved using Pleurotus ostreatus to restore an impacted soil.

Keywords: Pleurotus ostreatus, heavy metals, hydrocarbons, lubricating oil, contaminants, soil.