[Pil-pc-oceania] clean olive oil grown in contaminated soil

[Deb Guildner]

As I have always understood it, heavy metals do not make their way into the fruits of plants, but accumulate in the roots and leaves, as roots can not uptake from soils discriminately.  Therefore the leaves and roots of these olive trees would not be suitable for use. 

Greens grown in contaminated soil (varying degrees in most urban environments due to long legacy of Dr Hoffman's lead additive in petrol) are not recommended, but tomatoes capsicums peas fruits etc are fine.

Leaves of plants, however, are able to acess only the nutrients that they require at any given time, therefore foliar sprays of, say, liquid seaweed, are invaluable for uptake by plants at times of critical needs (stress, frost, disease, flowering, etc)

Cheers
Deb
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: David Arnold 
  To: permacultue discussion list 
  Sent: Thursday, August 09, 2007 9:30 AM
  Subject: [Pil-pc-oceania] clean olive oil grown in contaminated soil



  ABC radio national Bush Telegraph http://www.abc.net.au/rn/bushtelegraph had this story last week.

  "The Silver City is already famous for its deposits of lead, zinc and silver.

  In fact Broken Hill Gourmet Products decided to plant its two and a half hectare olive grove at an old mine tailings dam.

  The two fold benefit is the olive trees help clean up the mine site and produce a oil that contains no poisonous heavy metals.

  In this report: Steve Flecknoe-Brown, local physician and chairman of Broken Hill Gourmet Products."

  The explanation is given that "salts of heavy metals are not soluble in oil".  The trees themselves take up the heavy metals, but the oil they produce is shown in tests to be free from contamination. 

  This indicates potential for the use of olive trees for olive oil as street trees along busy roads that accumulated lead contamination prior to the introduction of unleaded petrol.  [ i believe there may be other contaminants in ulp that would have to be considered or tested for in the oil produced.] 


  dave


  -- 
  David Arnold
  Permaculture Designer
  4446 Murchison Rd
  Violet Town VIC AUS 3669
  03 5798 1679
  arnold.vt at gmail.com 


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