The Efficacy of Grape Pomace, Biochar, and Zeolite Amendments In Stabilizing Lead and Arsenic In Contaminated Soils.

Lead and arsenic are heavy metals of significant environmental concern. The ability to adsorb metals with organic and mineral amendments was investigated as an alternative remediation technique to relatively disruptive methods like excavation. Grape pomace, a waste product regularly produced in California’s Central Coast Region, biochar, and zeolite material were added to lead and arsenic contaminated soils and evaluated in sorption studies. Soil respiration was measured as a general gauge of biotic activity, while the different fractions of the lead and arsenic existing in the soils after the treatments were determined through sequential extraction, evaluating the efficacy of grape pomace, biochar, and zeolite material as soil amendments for stabilizing arsenic and lead in soils.