Contaminated natural wetlands as models for enhancing the mitigation efficiency of constructed wetlands

Natural wetlands serve important roles as filters of environmental pollutants and excess nutrients, while constructed wetlands aim to mimic the mitigative properties of natural wetlands, usually to detoxify effluent from point sources of pollution. Pollution and nutrient removal processes are mediated by complex biological and geochemical interactions that are poorly understood and difficult to replicate in laboratory settings. This presentation will focus on ‘finding the good in the bad,’ using contaminated natural wetlands as in situ models for the built environment. In a complex world, how do we know what properties must be conserved to maximize efficiency?