7-11 IAN Toxic Mushrooms

 Porcini, Shitake or plain old Button, I love eating mushrooms. But if you asked some mushrooms they'd tell you petroleum, industrial waste and chemicals are downright delicious.  Hi, I'm David Sparks, and while I know mushrooms can't talk, there are some species that have a hardy appetite for toxics and pollutants.  Can we reclaim land and clean up the environment with scientifically selected fungi?  Stick around a second and I'll tell you why it sounds crazy but it's real.According to an article coming out of  my old hometown, Montréal, mushrooms that have an appetite for petroleum can be used to clean up polluted sites. We all know it can take decades  after buildups of chemical pollutants in the land to restore this land to its original pristine condition. But not if you let some hungry mushrooms feed on the waste. The diners at this  toxic dinner table are certain fungi, microorganisms, and even trees. Dinner lasts only a few years. Mohamed Hijri, a professor of biological sciences and researcher at the University of Montreal’s Institute of Research in Biological Vegetation. I called Dr. Hijri and left a message which he didn’t return. I presume he may have been in the bowels of his laboratory growing mushrooms.