Function of Toadstools in Toxic Waste (and Animal/Human Remains) Decomp/Cleanup?

I think it's called mycoremediayion...

https://fungially.com/mycoremediation-using-mushrooms-clean-toxic-waste-environment/

Not all toxic/hazardous waste is created equal...

..."Wastes that are hazardous due to the toxicity characteristic are harmful when ingested or absorbed. Toxic wastes present a concern as they may be able to leach from waste and pollute groundwater. The toxicity of a waste is determined by the Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) (SW-846 Test Method 1311). EPA assigned wastes codes D004 through D043 that correspond to a contaminant and its associated TCLP concentration.

To learn more about the toxicity characteristic and regulatory levels for the TCLP test see 40 CFR section 261.24."...

https://www.epa.gov/hw/defining-hazardous-waste-listed-characteristic-and-mixed-radiological-wastes#toxic

..."The key players in bioremediation are bacteria—microscopic organisms that live virtually everywhere. Microorganisms are ideally suited to the task of contaminant destruction because they possess enzymes that allow them to use environmental contaminants as food and because they are so small that they are able to contact contaminants easily. In situ bioremediation can be regarded as an extension of the purpose that microorganisms have served in nature for billions of years: the breakdown of complex human, animal, and plant wastes so that life can continue from one generation to the next."...

..."The goal in bioremediation is to stimulate microorganisms with nutrients and other chemicals that will enable them to destroy the contaminants. The bioremediation systems in operation today rely on microorganisms native to the contaminated sites, encouraging them to work by supplying them with the optimum levels of nutrients and other chemicals essential for their metabolism. Thus, today's bioremediation systems are limited by the capabilities of the native microbes. However, researchers are currently investigating ways to augment contaminated sites with nonnative microbes—including genetically engineered microorganisms—specially suited to degrading the contaminants of concern at particular sites. It is possible that this process, known as bioaugmentation, could expand the range of possibilities for future bioremediation systems."...

...."Although bioremediation currently is used commercially to cleanup a limited range of contaminants—mostly hydrocarbons found in gasoline—microorganisms have the capability to biodegrade almost all organic contaminants and many inorganic contaminants. A tremendous variety of microbial processes potentially can be exploited, extending bioremediation's utility far beyond its use today. Whether the application is conventional or novel by today's standards, the same principles must be applied to stimulate the right type and amount of microbial activity."...

https://www.nap.edu/read/2131/chapter/4#19

In all reality, they probably have a fairly limited range of applications- not for lack of capabilities, but lack of access to most of the contamination.

My business is environmental remediation. I deal primarily with hydrocarbons (fuels up to grease level) and chlorinated solvents, a little bit with PCB's etc.

The biggest problem with most remediation solutions is CONTACT. In this case, how deep does the organism penetrate into the ground? For limited depth issues this is great, but very often a problem arises because the contaminants have penetrated to an aquifier and become mobilized.

Having said that, bacterium are a vital part of any clean up strategy and you use whatever tools you can. So I would not look down on the usefulness of toadstools, just consider that like any other tool they are best used in circumstances that work to their strengths and avoid their weaknesses. One possible use would be treating windrows of excavated material, where there is a lot of surface area compared to the overall volume of the pile.

Thank you JNB and all. Where I saw this phenomenon was in a patch of ground about 4 ft by about 10 ft next to a carport. The ground had been contaminated so deeply that even a yucca plant which is common here in America and can have a Taproot as much as 40 feet deep into the ground, making it virtually impossible to kill, had died. In spring, I saw that the Toadstools had sprung up over the whole surface, in clusters so dense they probably covered 100% of the space. I left them alone, being curious what they would do through the year, and the next spring I accidentally kicked one immediately after a snowfall. The Toadstools exploded into what looked like powder (spores, possibly?). I walked through the rest and they all responded the same way. Later that spring, after a complete thaw, grass came up, and by summer the entire patch was verdant green. Of course none of this bears any testimony to how badly or deeply the ground below remained contaminated. But subsequent years (2 more, if I remember correctly) supported continued healthy growth of grass. The yucca didn't come back, but those bears have spines, and I was glad to see it gone. I always wondered if the Toadstools were a volunteer cleanup crew, but didn't realize they can be deliberately utilized.

I know that Liverpool University (UK) were researching in this area in the late '90s. There was at the time a contaminated plot of land in the north of the city that had previously been used for processing tar and bitumen which they cleaned up as a test site. The researchers extracted the active components from fungii, they were close mouthed about the exact details, and sprayed it onto the land. Six/nine months later all the toxicity had gone and the land was suitable for building housing. In 2014 the Ecologist magazine reported similar results from Helsinki University. I presumed that the process would be patented with royalties funding further university research. There is a vast worldwide market for soil remediation but I have not heard of it's widespread exploitation so it is possible that treating contaminated soil on a large scale is not commercially viable at the current stage of research.

So, all of this has been/is extremely valuable info, which I will apply on my farm in the future. BUT, what engendered my question in the beginning is a question arising from https://insights.globalspec.com/article/10861/washington-state-considers-legalizing-composting-human-remains

And

https://insights.globalspec.com/article/11923/washington-state-legalizes-human-composting

Reference is made in the comments to using human tissue compost in turn creating a Prion Loop. My question here is whether Mycoremediation could break that loop, via the decomp processes the Myco-colonies would cause.

Any input to that specifically?

Thank you again for the input to date.

There's no question in my mind that DNA eventually breaks down in the environment, the question is how long does it take....If something is growing and up-taking the DNA and is then eaten, or that which has eaten it is eaten, then I see that as a problem....Now fungus spreads via the wind, so this could be like an explosion of contamination that could go very wrong...We need further research in this area before decisions are made concerning human and human waste disposal methods...It's possible we could engineer a specific microbe for prion destruction and mitigate the risk in this manner....but forging ahead in this reckless manner does not bode well.....

I don't think it's much of a stretch to equate the shrinking habitat of deer with the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease...

..."As of June 7, 2019, CWD in free-ranging deer, elk and/or moose has been reported in at least 24 states in the continental United States, as well as two provinces in Canada. In addition, CWD has been reported in reindeer and/or moose in Norway, Finland, and Sweden, and a small number of imported cases have been reported in South Korea. The disease has also been found in farmed deer and elk.

CWD was first identified in captive deer in a Colorado research facility in the late 1960s, and in wild deer in 1981. By the 1990s, it had been reported in surrounding areas in northern Colorado and southern Wyoming. Since 2000, the area known to be affected by CWD in free-ranging animals has increased to at least 24 states, including states in the Midwest, Southwest, and limited areas on the East Coast. It is possible that CWD may also occur in other states without strong animal surveillance systems, but that cases haven’t been detected yet. Once CWD is established in an area, the risk can remain for a long time in the environment. The affected areas are likely to continue to expand.

Nationwide, the overall occurrence of CWD in free-ranging deer and elk is relatively low. However, in several locations where the disease is established, infection rates may exceed 10 percent (1 in 10), and localized infection rates of more than 25 percent (1 in 4) have been reported. The infection rates among some captive deer can be much higher, with a rate of 79% (nearly 4 in 5) reported from at least one captive herd."...

The more concentrated the habitat, the higher the infection rate...

https://www.cdc.gov/prions/cwd/occurrence.html

Good point, solar eagle! And it was your comments in the threads on body decomp in Washington state that led me to this question. So thank you again for weighing in on it.

The general question of decontamination by fungi can only be answered in terms of biodiversity. The capacity for specific bacteria and fungi to decompose contaminants is pretty specific to what is being decomposed, and will also depend on your environment - pH and temperature are key determinants of the survival or failure of specific bacterial or fungal communities - and how diverse is the spore bank or resident population/bacterial inoculum to carry out the task at hand in the place in question.

It sounds to me like your toadstools were definitely a response to the contamination. The die off of vegetation may have simply provided them with nutrients and empty space. It's not impossible that they broke down the contaminant (which you didn't name) but there is no guarantee of that, either.

This comment is based on some reading I did, of a volume of research carried out and published after Chernobyl (so quite a while ago), on the uptake of radioactive isotopes by edible wild fungi and miscellaneous weeds and plants that sprung up in contaminated areas. The dive took me a bit further into the general body of research on heavy metals and other contaminants in soil, which it turns out, are differentially sequestered (taken up) by different species of plants and fungi. The contaminants in these studies were not broken down by that first generation to be exposed. On the contrary, you could end up with a mouthful of contaminant, that happened to be tolerated and taken up by the organism if it happened to be your medicine or food. The same applies to the weeds now growing in your contaminated area.

There is certainly a clean up crew in the saprophytic group of fungi, this is where their potential for bioremediation lies and of course it is a general role that they have, to break down decaying matter. But cleanup may not be the only role that the life entity (aka God if you will) has given them. Plasticity in the kindom of fungi is remarkable, and strange conditions may cause them to produce strange things ie 'secondary substances' which affect other organisms (sometimes fatally, other times mutagenic). I personally suspect that fungi have played a role in evolution in cataclysmic times. In any case, caution is advised with anything growing in your contaminated area, whether fungal or plant.

On the question of prion contaminants in soil, I don't see a really active trend in research on microbial degradation. But there are a couple of studies from 2007 which indicated some thermophilic bacteria could break down prions in the right conditions.

This study identified a species/strain of Bacillus that broke down prions at temperature 60-70 C and pH of 9-10. I don't know if such a high pH is found in soil anywhere that plants commonly grow. ? The process was not suggested for soil.

A second study looked at prion decomposition in composting, reaching temperatures of 60C. No species were identified, but their first experiment which was successful in breaking down prions had more thermophilic bacteria.

Whether the 'human remains' composter people are using a specific process to eliminate prions, I don't know. I think the use of such compost on vegetable gardens is a bit far. Plant an apple tree, if the composted person was determined to be food!

If dealing with remains of infected (or suspected) animals on a farm/ or in contact with farm soil, the effectiveness of thermophilic bacteria would certainly put me in the direction of soil solarization treatments or composting which is tightly controlled and temperature measured, to reduce risks if they can't be entirely avoided. Obviously if growing or planning to grow food in prion contaminated soil, you would not want to do that after any of these mitigating treatments, unless you also had it tested by the health authorities to ensure prions are gone!

Thank you Artsmith! As it happens, in our current situation, we are in no danger as far as we can tell of any prion involvement. And we have no animals on the property, and have as far as I know never had, though we've only been on this property about six months. But regardless, if that ever becomes a question or a worry I'll definitely be following your advice.