How Fungi Can Restore the Land

Mycologist Paul Stamets believes that mycelium, a fungi, could be integral to restoring damaged soil, repairing habitats, and even cleaning brownfields.

1 minute read

April 5, 2010, 7:00 AM PDT

By Tim Halbur

Adam E. Andersen talked to Stamets about his ideas.

"I'll spare extreme scientific detail, mostly because I have trouble wrapping my head around it, but experiments have shown mycelium has the ability to breakdown hydrocarbons, transforming them down into carbohydrates. Taking a pile of oil saturated soil infused with the spores, it quickly began to breakdown the pollutants, spawning mushrooms. Insects were soon attracted and laid eggs, spawned, birds fed on insects and brought in seeds, eventually creating a habitat out of toxic waste."

FULL STORY: Mycroremediation | How Fungi Can Restore Our Habitats

Sunday, April 4, 2010 in Design Under Sky

Environment World Brownfields fungus

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