Mario Paniagua-López
Mario Paniagua-López is a Spanish researcher specialized in soil sciences and bioremediation, focusing on sustainable methods for remediating soils polluted by metal(loid)s. He holds a PhD in Earth Sciences from the University of Granada, where he also completed a Master’s degree in Conservation, Management, and Restoration of Biodiversity. His research is mainly focused on ecotoxicity, soil pollution, and the use of symbiotic and saprobic microorganisms for soil restoration. Currently based at the Spanish National Research Council, he has held various research positions in different institutions and multidisciplinary research groups related to soil and environmental sciences. He has contributed to several high-impact publications, exploring topics such as waste valorization for soil bioremediation and the ecological recovery of polluted environments. His work, therefore, has implications for advancing sustainable agriculture and environmental conservation through the development of innovative solutions for soil health and pollution mitigation. He currently aims to broaden his international research experience by pursuing a PostDoc at a foreign institution.
Sessions
Remediation strategies for metal(loid)-polluted soils can be based on physical, chemical, and biological approaches, as well as on the combination of these. The present work evaluates the effectiveness of a set of soil remediation treatments for restoring soil health in degraded soils consisting of the combined application of inorganic and organic amendments (marble sludge, vermicompost, and dry olive residue [DOR] biotransformed by the saprobic fungi Coriolopsis rigida and Coprinellus radians) and the inoculation of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMFs) (Rhizophagus irregularis and Rhizoglomus custos). These treatments were applied under greenhouse conditions to soil residually polluted by metal(loid)s including Pb, As, Zn, Cu, Cd, and Sb, and wheat was cultivated in the amended soils to test the effectiveness of the treatments in reducing soil toxicity and improving soil and plant health. In this sense, the influence of the treatments on the main soil properties and microbial activities was evaluated, as well as on PTE availability and bioaccumulation in wheat plants. Overall, all treatments showed a positive influence in terms of soil properties improvement, while those combining marble and biotransformed DOR as organic amendment were the most effective in improving soil biological status, promoting plant growth and survival, and reducing PTE availability and plant uptake. Furthermore, AMF inoculation further enhanced the efficacy of DOR amendments by promoting the immobilization of PTEs in soil and stimulating the phytostabilization mechanisms induced by AMFs, thus playing an important bioprotective role in plants. In conclusion, these findings indicate that biotransformed DOR may represent an efficient product for use as a soil organic amendment for the remediation of metal(loid)-polluted soils, and that its application in combination with AMFs may represent a promising sustainable bioremediation strategy for recovering soil health and functions in polluted areas.