We already have other plants that can target arsenic and lead. [1] Japan planted millions of sunflowers after Fukushima to attempt to absorb radiation, as prev

We already have other plants that can target arsenic and lead. [1] Japan planted millions of sunflowers after Fukushima to attempt to absorb radiation, as previous studies had shown they could absorb cesium. [2] However, they underperformed. There is an ongoing challenge with hyperaccumulators of what to do with the plant material. When the plants decay or are ultimately destroyed, many toxic compounds are re-released. The cost of planting, harvesting, maintaining, transporting, and safely destroying toxic plant material can often be higher than simply stripping a few feet of soil off the ground and burying it in a landfill. [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hyperaccumulators http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_hyperaccumulators [2] http://www.care2.com/causes/sunflowers-fail-in-nuclear-decontamination-japanese-public-rejecting-nuclear-energy.html http://www.care2.com/causes/sunflowers-fail-in-nuclear-decon...