Pollution effects of fertilizer factory effluent on growth and development of corn and rice seedlings

Laboratory experiments were conducted to study the impact of various concentrations of fertilizer factory effluent on the germination and growth of corn and rice seedlings. The effluent was found to be rich in various solids, biochemical oxygen demand (13013), N⁺, Ca²⁺, Na⁺, Cl⁻, Co₃²⁻ and HCO₃⁻, deficient in dissolved oxygen and highly alkaline in nature.

Effluent at low concentrations of 2.5 and 5% (v/v) had no significant effect on seed germination but enhanced the growth and development of seedlings of both test crops. Higher concentrations of effluent, however, reduced seed viability and percentage germination and caused deleterious effects on growth and development.

The greening of the coleoptile was delayed at higher effluent concentrations. The concentrations of Na⁺, Ca²⁺, Na⁺ and Cl⁻ in the shoot and root systems of control seedlings of corn and rice were similar whereas in effluent-treated seedlings, a relatively high amount of Na⁺ and low amount of Cl⁻ was found in the roots as compared to the shoots, but the amount of Ca²⁺ was similar in both.