Tasmanian Aquatic Plants and Mining

This book provides an overview of aquatic plants in Tasmania’s inland freshwater systems, with a focus on their ecology, distribution, endemism, rarity, conservation status, cytotypes, and documented uses. It examines 39 botanical families, 72 genera, and 145 species. Of these, 57% are classified as threatened, 44% have restricted global distributions, and 28% are introduced. Most species (92%) have recorded economic or ancestral uses; 36% are associated with the remediation of metals and metalloids, and at least 23% are relevant to Native Nations, including Tasmanian Aboriginal communities. The volume also presents chemical profiles of selected species collected from natural wetlands and mining tailings in western Tasmania. Tasmanian Aquatic Plants and Mining addresses a gap in research on the application of aquatic plants in mining contexts, including their potential roles in environmental remediation and metal recovery under conditions shaped by growing demand for critical minerals, climate change, and associated environmental pressures. Drawing on expertise from Mexico and Australia, the authors adopt a multidisciplinary approach that integrates botany, environmental chemistry, and economic geology. The book considers plant-based approaches to critical mineral production and the protection of aquatic and wetland systems in mining landscapes. This volume will be of interest to researchers and practitioners in botany, ecology, environmental science, geology, wetland management, and the mining sector, as well as to policymakers.