Plant growth–promoting rhizobacteria-assisted phytoremediation of mine soils

The ever growing buildup of mine waste across the planet has become a global concern. Mine spoils often endanger surrounding ecosystems because toxic metals migrate through air, water, and soil, and ultimately enter the food chain. Yet, conventional techniques are usually impracticable because of the large amounts of mine waste, their cost and frequent hazardous side effects. Phytoremediation, a plant-based technique that allows immobilizing and/or extracting pollutants has shown promising results in the reclamation of mine tailings. Nevertheless, the need to enhance the efficiency of phytoremediation has prompted the adoption of auxiliary strategies such as the use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). PGPR are known to bestow a wide variety of beneficial effects such as increased growth, improved immunity, and the modification of metal phytoavailability in the rhizosphere, to name a few. In this chapter, we review the impact of PGPR on phytoremediation of mine soils to date and discuss future directions.