From a casual cannabis cultivator perspective I’m concerned about pollen from these projects floating around.
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I unfortunately don’t have those details… I mean protections should probably be there but our governments are notorious for clawing back or stalling environmental regs….
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There’s probably restrictions from Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. I’d have to go through them though to be sure.
From the article I shared above:
“ In conventional phytoremediation, once the plants have absorbed the maximum level of contaminants, they are usually destroyed (typically incinerated).”
Trust me, I was shocked to learn about this as well. Covered in detail in a “issues in urban agriculture” course I took as part of my U of Guelph education.
We had a lot of discussions over the environmental impact of just incinerating it all into the air… climate change is a huge discussion at the uni level…
What wildlife benefits from cannabis?
One thing is for sure, if weed was good forage for the wildlife around here I’d break out the tractor and disc and get busy.
I suppose it’s good cover if you got enough of it. Lol
As far as soil health would be interesting to see if it has benefits similar to popular cover crops.
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Not arguing you can use hemp to remove contaminate im just curious wha you then do with these barrels filled with toxic ash? Ship em to china?
Not OP, but from my understanding cannabis is used for the phytoremediation steps only. It has no value to wildlife but as a hyperaccumulator takes up heavy metals and toxins from the soil. This is removed and incinerated offsite and successive crops of hemp are used while monitoring the soil contamination levels. This is mono-crop hemp at this point, with the sole purpose of removal of those toxins/contaminants.
After the soil testing indicates that the levels of toxin have been reduced to acceptable levels, then different native species of plants and trees are planted (not cannabis any longer) to rehabilitate the land. At this point wildlife will return and contribute to the overall ecosystem as it improves.
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Typically incineration… not stored in barrels…
ash doesn’t disappear
What do you do with the ash? You put it in barrels ( or capped landfills)if you put it back in the land you are starting the contamination cycle all over agin
If your contamination is Nitrogen Or phosphorus this is sounding like a great idea. What about lead or radiation?
I’m all for golf corses being mandated to plant nitrogen sequestrating marijuana. But at the end of the day golf corses are business and they aren’t dumping more N on them than they need to to keep the grass green.
Its the bulk majority of average idiots to blame for that.
Yes that is correct, most is landfilled. You should read the article I posted as much of your questions around this are covered…
“However, in some applications, the extracted material is then processed to remove the metal. This is a relatively new science called phytomining, which is phytoextraction applied to the extraction of various metals from waste sites using different plants, including hemp 10. For example, rare earth metals are being extracted from acid drainage sites that contain waste effluents leftover from the refining of rare earth minerals. This is attracting a great deal of attention, particularly from China and South Africa, where most rare earth mining is carried out today. It is a way of both cleaning up the waste site and also extracting the rare earth metals, which would otherwise have been treated and dumped 11.”
Otherwise treated and dumped…
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Worms!!!
Here’s an interesting article lol. I’ve HEARD that thermophilic composting and worms can have some effect on heavy metal levels in soil. I don’t really know enough to talk about it just maybe starting a conversation.
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Go it so as far as hemp we are talking about a starting point for rehabilitating destroyed land.
Not the native icing on the cake * habitat restoration*
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Yes that is correct. The true habitat restoration comes after the use of hemp.
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Good article FishWhistler! I hope their approach sees some success. Note that in the article it is acknowledged that those effluents and heavy metals are typically just disposed of in their waterway system and known to make its way to the food stream. Crazy! I guess India doesn’t have an EPA?
@OP, kudos for addressing that any cannabis products generated in the soil reclamation efforts should not be consumed/smoked!
Following the discussion, it should be pointed out that the fact that cannabis is a good hyper-accumulator and phytoremediator, that it takes up heavy metals, radioactive isotopes (Chernobyl) and toxins and stores them long term within its tissues. Even incineration does not fully remove all metals and phytomining is becoming a thing to help address the problem.
Remember this thread the next time a bro grower tells you that “flushing” removes toxins from the buds…
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well in that case phosphorus is the “toxin” and a flush is used to cause plant to finish its available resources?
Phosphorus that has been taken up by the plant is a nutrient not a toxin.
Excess phosphorous in the medium that you flush down the drain becomes a toxin in our Great Lakes and water systems. It is certainly a concern there!
A prudent suggestion then may be to only give the plant what it needs…
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Hey this is a super cool idea and I have a ton of ideas on this (and a whole proposed research plan starting this fall)!
So when talking habit restoration you need to first and foremost consider short and long term goals and build towards biodiversity. More diverse plantings and leveraging local species/genotypes will be crucial. I work in a state that was historically tall grass prairie, so my model will be to integrate cannabis growing with prairie ecosystems. For your selected sites, make sure you have an understanding of historic landscapes and biogeography (message me if you want to know more or if you need any help, I love helping out with shit like this).
I have tons more thoughts and am excited to see other people start to pick up this mantle and run with it! If you need any help with grant writing or sources for funding let me know!
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Cannabis Kultivation has the potential to benefit a wide range of wildlife, including mammals, birds, insects, and reptiles. Dense cannabis Krops can provide vital habitat features for these animals, offering cover, shelter, and opportunities for foraging. By creating diverse microhabitats within agricultural landscapes, cannabis fields can contribute to the conservation of wildlife species and support overall biodiversity…
Additionally, cannabis Kultivation can attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies, which play a crucial role in ecosystem health and the pollination of both wild and cultivated plants. By providing a diverse array of flowering plants, including those found in cannabis fields, pollinator populations can thrive, further enhancing biodiversity…
Research has shown that diverse agricultural landscapes, incorporating practices such as cannabis Kultivation, can have positive impacts on wildlife habitat. However, the specific benefits to wildlife may vary depending on factors such as crop management practices and surrounding habitat conditions…
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