Α new open access research paper was published by Assistant Professor Alexandros Stefanakis in journal Water of MDPI with the title "Effect of Plant Species on the Performance and Bacteria Density Profile in Vertical Flow Constructed Wetlands for Domestic Wastewater Treatment in a Tropical Climate"

Six pilot-scale vertical flow constructed wetlands (VFCW) were built as nature-based solutions for sustainable domestic wastewater treatment and planted them 5 native plant species (i.e., Andropogon gayanus, Chrysopogon zizanioides, Echinochloa pyramidalis, Pennisetum purpureum and Tripsacum laxum,) of west Africa (Côte d’Ivoire), while one was the unplanted control. These species are rarely used in CWs, while some are tested for the first time.

The treatment performance in the removal of organic matter (90.9–95.9%; COD and 95.2–98.5%; BOD5), nitrogen (74.3–84%; TN and 76–84%; NH4-N) and phosphorus (77.4–96.9%; PO4-P) was excellent for a single-stage VFCW. Plants presence enhanced the bacterial density and the efficiency. Aerobic bacteria were dominant in the beds and decreased from the upper to bottom layers, while anaerobic bacteria increased with depth.

Overall, the VFCW with P. purpureum demonstrated the highest efficiency, indicating that this design is an effective green technology for wastewater treatment in a tropical climate.