Constructed reedbeds for wastewater treatment: metal contamination and community ecology

Artificial wetlands known as "constructed reedbeds" are commonly used to treat domestic and industrial wastewater. There are thousands of these reedbeds across the UK, and our recent work suggests that they make a substantial contribution to wetland biodiversity. But little is known about the long-term ecological consequences of their use in the treatment of water which is contaminated with a variety of organic and inorganic pollutants.