Uses For Hemp

Uses for hemp

Industrial Hemp for Bioremediation

“Hemp is proving to be one of the best phyto-remediative plants we have been able to find,” said Slavik Dushenkov, a research scientist with PHYTOTECH.

We know that industrial hemp is very healthy for our bodies, but it is also healing to the natural environment around us.

Hemp is one of the best plants for use in phytoremediation (healing the soil with plants).

Contamination of land and water is a growing concern for the health of the environment. Conventional practices in the remediation of contamination usually involve expensive processes such as land filling or incineration of soil. Phytoremediation uses plants to accumulate certain metals in plant biomass or accelerate contaminant breakdown.

Hemp is a suitable crop for phytoremediation of contaminated soil because, although hemp is not considered a hyperaccumulator it is able to remove significant quantities of contaminants which are generally stored in its roots.

Hemp was used in 1998 by Phytotech and Ukraine’s Institute of Bats Crops for removing contaminants near Chernobyl. Many studies have been conducted since to determine the suitability of hemp for phytoremediation. In many studies hemp has displayed a very high tolerance to contaminants. It also has a greater adaptability to different soils and climatic conditions and has added benefits of being a rotational crop which can improve soil quality.

Water and soil purification

Hemp can be used as a “mop crop” to clear impurities out of wastewater, such as sewage effluent, excessive phosphorus from chicken litter, or other unwanted substances or chemicals. Additionally, hemp is being used to clean contaminants at the Chernobyl nuclear disaster site, by way of a process which is known as phytoremediation—the process of clearing radioisotopes as well as a variety of other toxins from the soil, water, and air.

Barrier planting & Erosion control

Hemp can be used as an effective erosion control method: fiber blankets produced from agricultural fibers such as hemp are used to combat weeds and to prevent erosion on and around newly constructed berms and steep highway banks by motorways. Hemp fibers greatly accelerate the establishment of vegetation. Over time, the natural fiber will decompose completely and vegetation coverage reduces erosion. Typically, blankets are used for the following applications: slope protection, channel and ditch linings, reservoir embankments and spillways, culvert inlets and outfalls, dikes, levees and riverbanks.

Strong hemp fibers combined with a biodegradable cellulose backing is a sustainable alternative to products made with polypropylene scrim.