Cleaning up soil at a construction site is something most people want to finish quickly. The usual process of digging, dumping, and hauling is noisy, costly, and often wasteful, since it just moves the problem instead of fixing it.
A Biological Alternative in Central France
In central France, MP GEOTEX is quietly proving there’s another way. The company, based in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, has developed the MP Cocoon system, a method that utilizes fungi to naturally remediate contaminated soil without requiring off-site disposal.
Trapping and Restoring Polluted Soil On-Site
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The system looks like a cocoon. Instead of taking the polluted soil away, workers wrap it on-site in a strong bio-textile sleeve. They add oxygen and a special mix of fungi, which start breaking down hydrocarbon pollutants inside the enclosure.
Besides hydrocarbons, the cocoon serves as a barrier and filter for harder-to-remove pollutants like heavy metals, PFAS, and related compounds. These contaminants are trapped or neutralized inside the enclosure, lowering the risk of them reaching groundwater during cleanup.
Rethinking Waste in Construction
This method takes more time than just digging up and removing soil. However, this leaves the site in better shape than before. Rather than treating contaminated soil as waste, this process restores it, improving its structure and long-term health.
Construction may never be completely waste-free, but solutions like this make it less about just managing problems.
