Environmental and Agricultural Consequences of Textile Effluents on Soil Fertility and Plant Growth
Monu, Reenu Agarwal and Shilpi Rijhwani
Department of Botany, IIS (Deemed to be University), Jaipur - 302020 (India)
ABSTRACT
One of the biggest drivers of India’s economy, the textile sector uses enormous amounts of chemicals and water during production, producing complicated effluents that pose serious health and environmental hazards. These effluents frequently contain levels of heavy metals like chromium, copper, zinc, and cadmium that are over allowable limits, along with dyes, surfactants, salts, acids, and alkalis. Textile wastewater changes physicochemical characteristics, lowers soil fertility, contaminates groundwater, and builds up toxicants in crops when it is released into soil and water bodies without treatment. According to published research, some plant species may benefit from partially diluted effluents in terms of germination, biomass, and chlorophyll content, but larger concentrations have a negative effect on seed germination, root elongation, plant biomass, and yield. Longterm irrigation with untreated wastewater increases the concentration of heavy metals in soils and plant tissues, endangering human health, ecological health, and food security. The dual effects of textile effluents on soil-plant systems are highlighted in this review, along with the pressing need for effective wastewater treatment techniques to reduce environmental damage and investigate safe reuse options.