IJSRP, Volume 3, Issue 2, February 2013 Edition [ISSN 2250-3153]
ChesfidaMaqbool, Anisa B. Khan
Abstract:
Hydrophytes are established bio-filters for a spectrum of pollutants and as such remediate gaseous contaminants as well. Carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) by virtue of aquatic plants at a local scale may manifest as invalid at the outset but the marine and inland water stretches do contribute a lot globally. A study pertaining to 15 emergent macrophytes represented by 10 families exhibited predominant carbon sequestration potential (CSP) ranging up to 412 Kg/ha. Organic carbon, biomass and calcium content determination provided the CSP values of each species studied. The correlation and regression analysis of the observed data revealed a highly significant relationship between carbon and biomass cum calcium with correlation coefficient values being close to 1. The interspecific comparison of the emergents confirmed Typha latifolia with the highest carbon content (53.62%) and CSP followed by Phragmites australis (52.02%) and Cyperus difformis (50.91%).