Meet the editors

Marcelo L. Larramendy, Ph.D., serves as Professor of Molecular Cell Biology at the School of Natural Sciences and Museum, National University of La Plata, Argentina. He is appointed as the Senior Researcher of the National Scientific and Technological Research Council of Argentina, and he is a former member of the Executive Committee of the Latin American Association of Environmental Mutagenesis, Teratogenesis and Carcinogenesis.

He is the author of more than 450 contributions, including scientific publications, research communications, and conferences worldwide, and he is a recipient of several national and international awards. Professor Larramendy is a regular lecturer at the International A. Hollaender Courses organized by the IAEMS, and he is a former guest scientist at NIH (USA) and at the University of Helsinki (Finland). He is an expert in genetic toxicology and is, or has been, a referee for more than 20 international scientific journals. In 2015, he was a member of the International Panel of Experts at the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, WHO, Lyon, France) for the evaluation of DDT, 2,4-D, and lindane. Presently, Dr. Larramendy is Head of the Laboratory of Molecular Cytogenetics and Genotoxicology at the UNLP.

Sonia Soloneski has a Ph.D. in Natural Sciences and is an Assistant Professor of Molecular Cell Biology at the School of Natural Sciences and Museum of La Plata, National University of La Plata, Argentina. She is a member of the National Scientific and Technological Research Council (CONICET) of Argentina in the Genetic Toxicology field, the Latin American Association of Environmental Mutagenesis, Teratogenesis and Carcinogenesis

(ALAMCTA), the Argentinean Society of Toxicology (ATA), the Argentinean Society of Biology (SAB), and the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC). She has authored more than 380 contributions in the field, including scientific publications in peer-reviewed journals and research communications. She has served as a review member for more than 30 scientific international journals. She has been a plenary speaker in scientific conferences and a member of scientific committees. She is a specialist in issues related to genetic toxicology, mutagenesis, and ecotoxicology.

Contents

**Section 1**

Techniques

*and Pavan Singh*

Contamination?

and Nutritional Stress

*by Samuel Tetsopgang*

*by Nikita Bisht and Puneet Singh Chauhan*

Heavy Metal Contamination

*by Soni Kumari and Amarnath Mishra*

**Preface XI**

Contamination Sources **1**

**Chapter 1 3**

**Chapter 2 17**

**Chapter 3 37**

**Chapter 4 59** Toxicity of Cadmium in Soil-Plant-Human Continuum and Its Bioremediation

**Chapter 5 81** Use of Swine Manure in Agriculture in Southern Brazil: Fertility or Potential

**Chapter 6 107** Excessive and Disproportionate Use of Chemicals Cause Soil Contamination

**Chapter 7 117**

Increasing Yields and Soil Chemical Properties through the Application of Rock Fines in Tropical Soils in the Western Part of Cameroon, Africa

Microbiological Indices for Diagnosis of Heavy Metal Contaminated Soils

*by Asik Dutta, Abhik Patra, Hanuman Singh Jatav, Surendra Singh Jatav,* 

*Satish Kumar Singh, Eetela Sathyanarayana, Sudhanshu Verma* 

*by Lucas Benedet, Guilherme Wilbert Ferreira, Gustavo Brunetto, Arcângelo Loss, Paulo Emílio Lovato, Cledimar Rogério Lourenzi, Sérgio Henrique Godinho Silva, Nilton Curi and Jucinei José Comin*

*by Sukirtee Chejara, Paras Kamboj, Y.V. Singh and Vikas Tandon*

Effect of PCP Pesticide Contamination on Soil Quality *by Rim Werheni Ammeri, Yassine Hidri and Hassen Abdenaceur*

## Contents



Preface

component. Soil presents absorbing and emitting capabilities and is susceptible to contamination by a multiplicity of exogenous and endogenous sources. The study of soil resources and environmental problems is a broad, fascinating field that can take numerous dissimilar directions. Today, many anthropogenic ,as well as geogenic activities, are pressing in soil health, generating a strong ecological concern that requires an interdisciplinary approach involving both regulatory organizations and institutions for promptly resolving this situation. Soil contamination is very complex, and it is also often unsafe and harmful to all living species, including human beings specifically. It most frequently occurs from urban development, agricultural practices, military activities, mine tailings, metal industries, industrial accidents, deposits, or the transport of hazardous chemicals, among several other sources. Like pesticides, chlorinated compounds, and nitrogen, certain trace elements such as arsenic, lead, cadmium, copper, mercury, silver, or nickel pollutants can both be naturally present in the soil and be the consequence of human-made activities that nature cannot—or can only very slowly—decompose or degrade. These interventions can fragment, change, or even destroy soil habitats, significantly modifying the biota that lives in the soil. Whereas soil has a marked self-purification capacity, cleaning up contaminated sites is a long and expensive process. Nonetheless, environmental remediation is an important focus of the green economy, and a wide variety of conventional and emerging technologies must rapidly be employed to remove contaminants from polluted sites in order to restore the soil environment and protect the health of living species, including humans. Finally, ensuring long-term management as a final step is mandatory to evaluate the

This single volume comprises fifteen high-quality chapters, organized into two sections, describing several issues related to soil contamination. The first section, *Contamination Sources*, comprises seven excellent and detailed chapters, starting with an update in the first chapter about the toxicity of heavy metals in several matrices including soil, water, air, and living organisms, presenting this problem as the main cause of environmental deterioration. This is followed by a second chapter providing information about the advantages and disadvantages of using microbial indices for heavy metal–contaminated and restored soils, highlighting the importance of understanding the mechanism(s) of responding to heavy metal stress and the methods available for the microbial diagnosis of heavy metal–contaminated soils. The third chapter presents an overview of the effect of pentachlorophenol pesticide contamination on microbial diversity, enzymatic activities, microbial biomass, and physicochemical soil characteristics, including a description of a bioremediation process. The fourth chapter summarizes the various sources of cadmium present in the environment and its toxic effects on plants and humans. It also includes a description of some bioremediation approaches to mitigate cadmium pollution in the environment. The fifth chapter provides information about how the prolonged use of high doses of fertilizers of

Soil is a living, active and nonrenewable reserve and a crucial ecosystem

effectiveness of remedial strategies.
