Phytotoxicity studies Disposal of untreated dyeing effluents
in water bodies might cause serious environmental and health
hazards and this water is being used for an agriculture purpose
shows toxic effect on the germination rates and biomass of several
plant species, which play an important role in ecological function
such as providing the habitat for wildlife, protecting soil from
erosion and providing bulk of organic matter that is so significant to
soil fertility (23,29,31,32). This study is of particular relevance since
the Panchganga river and Ichalkaranji area near Kolhapur, India are
heavily industrialized, with significant wastewater discharge from
textile industries to the environment which causes the harmful
impacts on the nearby flora and fauna. Thus, it was of concern to
assess the phytotoxicity of the azo dye before and after
degradation. Table 3 represents the phytotoxicity analysis of the
Remazol Red and its metabolites obtained after decolorization.
Phytotoxicity test in relation to P. mungo and S. vulgare
demonstrated that the biodegradation products did not interfere
with the germination of plant seeds. The germination rate of
P. mungo and S. vulgare was inhibited as well as plumule and
radical length were drastically affected when treated with
a Remazol Red (300 ppm). In contrast, plumule length and radical
length in P. mungo and S. vulgare were found equivalent to
control set (distilled water) with 90% germination when treated
with 300 ppm concentration of the degradation products
(Table 3).