Metal mining activities have been major contributors of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in the environment, leading to substantial soil pollution. One such example is lead–zinc mining around the world. Elevated concentrations of PTEs are commonly detected in nearby areas of both active and abandoned mines. This is primarily attributed to the release and dispersal of untreated waste materials from these mines into the surrounding environment. Mining-related soil pollution with PTEs can pose many different kinds of risks in a variety of contexts such as eco-toxicity, phytotoxicity, human health risk, as well as soil and water pollution. This review summarizes available data in the literature (2000–2023) on PTEs polluted soils originating from lead–zinc mining areas across the world. In this study, an attempt has been taken to evaluate the pollution level of PTEs in soils using collected data. The study shows the most polluted world regions are reported in Asia, followed by Europe and Africa, and only a few studies are reported in north, central and south America. The elements commonly analyzed in conjunction with Pb and Zn were Cd and Cu, whereas those responsible for increased pollution were Cd > As > Cu > Hg–Mn–Tl. Assessment of the pollution and health hazards has shifted to include a variety of quality indexes, including multivariate statistical analyses and microbial diversity.

Bioenergy crops such as Miscanthus × giganteus are foreseeable as an alternative source to replace fossil fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They are also assessed as an environment-friendly solution for polluted, marginal and low-quality agricultural soils. Several studies had been launched on soil organic carbon sequestration potentials of miscanthus culture along with its impacts on restoring soil functionality, most of which focus on the long-term basis of the plant’s cultivation. Nevertheless, information concerning the short term impacts as well as the situation in Czechia is still scarce. In this context, a field experiment was launched in 2017 in a poor-quality agricultural land in the city of Chomutov (North-Western Czechia) to compare the impacts of the perennial C₄ miscanthus with an annual C₃ forage crop (wheat) on the soil carbon stocks as well as enhancing its functionality. Results through the 0–30 cm soil profile examination showed that miscanthus plants played a role in improving the studied soil physico-chemical (bulk density and soil organic carbon concentrations) and biological (Phospholipid fatty acids stress indicator, basal respiration and fluorescein diacetate hydrolytic activity) parameters. The naturally occurring δ¹³C concentrations were used to evaluate the direct plant contribution to the total soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks and revealed considerable miscanthus contribution all over the detected soil layers (1.98 ± 0.21 Mg C. ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) after only 3 growing seasons. It is thus suggested that the C₄ perennial miscanthus possess remarkable prospects for SOC sequestration and restoring degraded lands.

Miscanthus × giganteus demonstrated good phytostabilization potentials by decreasing the trace elements (T.E.s) mobility and enhancing the degraded soil quality. Nevertheless, most of the published work was performed under controlled conditions in ex situ pot experiments and/or with soils being spiked. Hence, data about the plant’s tolerance to increased T.E. concentrations in real conditions is still scarce and requires further investigation. For this sake, a field experiment was established by cultivating miscanthus plants in three different agricultural plots representing gradient trace element (Cd, Pb and Zn) concentrations. Another uncontaminated plot was also introduced. Results showed that T.E. concentrations in the leaves were tolerable to the plant. In addition, no variations were detected between the miscanthus cultivated in the contaminated and uncontaminated soils at the level of antioxidant enzymatic activities (ascorbate peroxidase and superoxide dismutase), photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a and b and carotenoids), and secondary metabolites (phenolic compounds, flavonoids, anthocyanins, and tannins). These outcomes validate the high capacity of miscanthus to resist and tolerate contaminated conditions. Such results may contribute to further understanding of the miscanthus tolerance mechanisms.

Constructed wetlands (CWs) are considered as low-cost and energy-efficient wastewater treatment systems. Media selection is one of the essential technical keys for their implementation. The purpose of this work was essentially to evaluate the removal efficiency of organic pollution and nitrogen from municipal wastewater (MWW) using different selected media (gravel/gravel amended with granulated cork) in mesocosm horizontal flow constructed wetlands (HFCWs). The results showed that the highest chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonium nitrogen removal of 80.53% and 42%, respectively, were recorded in the units filled with gravel amended with cork. The influence of macrophytes (Phragmites australis and Typha angustifolia) was studied and both species showed steeper efficiencies. The system was operated under different hydraulic retention times (HRTs) i.e., 6 h, 24 h, 30 h, and 48 h. The obtained results revealed that the COD removal efficiency was significantly enhanced by up to 38% counter to the ammonium rates when HRT was increased from 6 h to 48 h. Moreover, the removal efficiency of two endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) namely, bisphenol A (BPA) and diclofenac (DCF) was investigated in two selected HFCWs, at 48 h HRT. The achieved results proved the high capacity of cork for BPA and DCF removal with the removal rates of 90.95% and 89.66%, respectively. The results confirmed the role of these engineered systems, especially for EDC removal, which should be further explored.