Fungal Fixes: How Mushrooms Can Help Save Our Planet
Fungal Fixes: How Mushrooms Can Help Save Our Planet
Here are 10 ways mushrooms may help save the planet — from reducing air pollution and microplastics to creating sustainable building materials and food products.
Our world is changing, and not for the better. We're facing an environmental crisis and we, as a species, must act fast if we're going to preserve the planet for future generations.
Fungi could play a large part in helping humanity combat the environmental issues we've birthed. The humble mushroom could help restore balance to our delicate environment by combating air and soil pollution, reducing microplastic contamination, providing a source of sustainable packaging, restoring soil quality, filtering water, and even cleaning up oil spills.
Let's explore 10 ways mushrooms may help us save planet Earth…
1. Neutralizing Carbon Pollution
We all know that trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, reducing its effect on climate change. Few acknowledge that they have silent partners living below the forest canopy that are just as (if not more) important than the trees themselves.
Mycorrhizal fungi intertwine with the roots of their favorite tree species, exchanging nutrients for sugars produced through photosynthesis. The mycelium — the fungal body of the mushrooms we see above ground — can stretch for miles under the forest floor. These fungi are “hidden climate warriors.”
Certain species of mycorrhizal fungi, dubbed "ectomycorrhizal fungi," help trees absorb CO2 from the atmosphere faster. They also retain carbon for much longer by slowing down the decomposition process that releases carbon back into the atmosphere.
Fungi's ability to store carbon as biomass allows forests to remove more CO2 from the atmosphere and keep it “locked” in the forest. Less CO2 in the atmosphere slows down climate change.
Ensuring the survival of ectomycorrhizal fungi species is essential in slowing down climate change.
2. Restoring Soil Quality
Mushrooms enhance soil quality and may be the key to restoring soil that’s been depleted from nutrients by modern agricultural practices.
Mycoremediation is a form of bioremediation that utilizes fungi to clean up polluted soil and restore its nutrient content.
Certain mushrooms, known as “decomposers,” break down organic and petroleum-based matter and convert it into readily available nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and calcium. These nutrients are deposited back into the soil, where they can be used by food-bearing crops.
Certain mushrooms, such as shiitake (Lentinula edodes) and oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus ostreatus), can be cultivated on nutrient-depleted and polluted soils to help restore fertility over time.
Mycoremediation isn’t instant; it takes some time to work (months to years, depending on the level of soil depletion).
3. Removing Microplastics
Plastic pollution is one of the biggest environmental contaminants threatening our planet right now. Plastic waste has more than doubled over the last two decades and continues to grow every year.
As plastics break down, they become microplastics — trillions of small plastic fragments that enter our soils, seas, and freshwater systems. These fragments quickly pass through the food chain, which has a devastating effect on the planet's biomass. Eventually, these microplastics end up in our food, where they can enter the body and endanger our health.
Several species in the Pestalotiopsis genus can eat microplastics and convert them back to organic molecules. These organic compounds can be used as nutrients for plants and food crops.
Once broken down, the microplastics are completely removed from the environment — a huge problem effectively solved.
4. Reducing Eutrophication
Eutrophication is the process where nutrient runoff from the land collects in water systems, causing explosive growth in microorganisms that suck up all the oxygen in the water. This kills larger aquatic organisms and creates "dead zones" in lakes, rivers, and along our coastlines. The main cause of eutrophication is agriculture — including both crop production and livestock farming.
Mycofiltration is a process that uses certain species of fungi to filter water and consum excess nutrients that leads to eutrophication.
This biotechnology could enhance the management of greywater, storm runoff, and agricultural runoff. Mycologist Paul Stamets invented the practice of mycofiltration back in the 1980s. He discovered that a particular species of mushroom called the “Garden Giant” (Stropharia rugoso-annulata) was able to significantly reduce bacterial runoff from upland pastures grazed by livestock.
From this discovery, Stamets developed a method of colonizing spawn bags of mycelium that could be laid like sandbags around contaminated water sources.
By using spawn bags full of live mycelium as a sandbag defense barrier around areas prone to runoff, the amount of nutrient-excess water that reaches the water systems downland can be dramatically reduced. This effectively halts the problem at its source before eutrophication occurs.
5. Making Biodegradable Plastics
Mushroom-based packaging is a fantastic alternative to oil-based plastics, which take thousands of years to decompose. This sustainable plastic alternative uses less energy to produce, doesn't require the use of fossil fuels, and is completely biodegradable.
The furniture giant IKEA has already switched to a mycelium-based packaging known as “MycoComposite.” This polystyrene-like packing foam can be grown and produced in less than seven days to the exact shape and size required.
When the packaging inevitably reaches landfill, it breaks down into harmless organics in a matter of weeks. You can even bury the material in your vegetable beds to act as a fertilizer for the soil.
Development is still in the early stages, but some experts believe mushrooms could be the answer to eliminating the plastic circulating in our environment by offering us an alternative to oil-based polymers.
6. Reducing the Environmental Impact of Livestock Farming
Reducing eutrophication from farm runoff isn’t the only way mushrooms can reduce the environmental impact of livestock farming.
Around 80% of the world’s soybean production is used to feed livestock (cattle mainly). This feed has a huge environmental impact. Not only do the cattle themselves require large areas of land, but the crops needed to feed them do as well. Keeping cattle requires a tremendous amount of resources.
One acre of soybeans will feed around 20 cows for one month. This may not sound bad, but when you multiply it by the estimated 1.5 billion cows farmed on our planet, you realize the scale of the problem. Livestock feed is largely responsible for deforestation and the devastation of natural flora and fauna.
Every 1 kg of beef sold at the supermarket requires 25 kg of crop and 15,000 liters of water.
Mushrooms may be part of the answer to this problem. Although mushrooms themselves aren’t a perfect alternative source of cattle feed, certain species of fungi can break down indigestible crop stalks to more easily digestible, carbohydrate-rich animal feeds. This could allow farmers to use the organic waste we’re already generating in the production of food crops like wheat, barley, and corn as livestock feed.
7. Sustainable Food Source
According to data from Statista, the world consumes around 340 million tons of meat per year, and demand is only increasing. The commercial meat industry, as it is today, is a major source of environmental degradation (not to mention the moral implications).
Mushrooms may offer a more sustainable replacement to supplement our reliance on meat. Companies like Fable Foods and Meati have developed delicious mushroom-based meals that taste just like meat.
Cultivating mushrooms requires significantly fewer resources than meat. Every kg of mushrooms produced consumes significantly less water, release far less CO2, and can be grown on a variety of substrates including agricultural waste products.
Mushrooms can also be grown vertically, making efficient use of space and potentially reducing the need for deforestation and habitat destruction associated with conventional agriculture.
Unlike most other food crops and meat products, mushrooms grow incredibly quickly, and large harvests are possible in a matter of weeks. The spent mushroom substrate can even be used to enhance soil health, improving fertility, structure, and water retention.
8. A Sustainable Building Material
Mushrooms can be used to grow buildings.
Amazingly, bricks can be grown from mycelium. These “biobricks” are made by colonizing molds filled with agricultural waste with mushroom mycelium. Once the mycelium colonizes the substrate completely, the resulting bricks are removed from the molds, revealing dense, structurally sound building blocks.
This sounds great in theory, but does it actually work?
Yes! In 2014, a building/art installation called “Hy-Fi” was constructed from mushroom biobricks in New York City. The structure still stands strong today and projects such as “FUNGAR” continue to experiment with the use of mycelium as an alternative to traditional, carbon-heavy building materials such as concrete.
9. Saving the Bees
Bees and other pollinating flying insects are in decline. This is mainly due to modern monoculture agricultural practices that lack biodiversity and require insecticidal spraying.
Mushrooms could help alter traditional agricultural processes to improve biodiversity by reducing the amount of land reserved for monoculture farming.
Mushrooms may also have the answer to a growing problem that honey bees are facing — disease.
Viral infections spread quickly through bee colonies, quickly killing entire hives. Once the hives die out, bees from other colonies enter the hives to “steal” resources, carrying the infection back to their own hives, causing the vicious infection to spread to multiple colonies.
Studies conducted by Paul Stamets have found that feeding honey bees mycelium from Polypore species of fungi can improve the bees’ resilience to certain diseases and bacterial infections. Research into the effectiveness of these mushrooms against bee-killing diseases is ongoing but extremely promising.
10. Remediation of Environmental Disasters
Oil spills are one of the most widely reported and destructive environmental disasters of our time. Although mushrooms can’t single-handedly clean up entire oil spills, they can help restore the land once the bulk of the spill is cleared up.
Even after “cleaning up” an oil spill, crude oil remains on the soil. This deems the land unfit for cultivation and makes it difficult for native flora to inhabit.
In the Ecuadorian Amazon, pits filled with crude oil have been abandoned for decades. The oil companies did eventually return to clear up the hazardous waste but didn’t restore the soil or make an effort to regenerate the land. Crude oil continues to leach into the locals’ food and water sources to this day.
Charitable organizations such as the “Amazon Defense Coalition” are teaching locals how to use a native filamentous fungus called Geomyces to clean up the remains of these oil pits. This fungus is capable of breaking down the remaining crude oil, creating fertile land that can be restored to its natural state or used to grow food crops or graze livestock.
Other environmental disasters involving radiation may also be remedied by fungi. In 1991, scientists in the Chernobyl nuclear disaster zone discovered several species of fungi. Many of these species were observed directing their mycelium networks toward the reactor itself.
The scientists discovered that the fungi were using the radioactive material as a food source, decomposing it, and converting it to energy for growth. These fungi have been dubbed “radiotrophic fungi” and may hold the answer to cleaning up the environment after devastating nuclear events.
Revolutionizing Environmental Restoration with Fungi
Mushrooms may help restore and preserve our planet for future generations. They can be used to reverse the damage we’ve done to our environment and could hold the answers to a more sustainable, environmentally friendly future.
Although mushrooms aren’t the only answer, working with fungi while restructuring our agricultural practices, energy consumption and production, and eating habits could save planet Earth.
List of Companies Working on Mushroom-Based Technologies & Mycoremediation Projects in 2024
Ecovative Design — Specializes in creating sustainable materials and packaging using mycelium-based technology.
MycoWorks — Develops eco-friendly mycelium-based materials for use in fashion, construction, and more.
BioMason — Produces sustainable construction materials using sustainable calcium carbonate bio-cement.
Novozymes — Focuses on industrial biotechnology solutions, including enzymes and microbes, for sustainable agriculture and environmental management.
Mushroom Mountain — Conducts research and offers products for mycoremediation and sustainable agriculture using mushrooms.
Fungi Perfecti — Provides mushroom-based products and solutions for health, environmental restoration, and sustainable living.
Planet Fungi — Media Company that educates and engages in the research and development of mycoremediation.
MycoCycle — Works on transforming waste streams into reusable resources through the power of fungi.
Goterra — Utilizes insects and fungi to recycle organic waste and produce sustainable byproducts.
Host Defense — Paul Stamets’ mushroom supplement brand that invests in environmental, health, and psychedelic research concerning mushrooms.
Book Recommendations
The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben — How forest ecosystems communicate through mycelial networks and airborne chemical signaling.
Mycelium Running by Paul Stamets — Explores the potential applications of fungi in bioremediation.
Organic Mushroom Farming & Mycoremediation by Tradd Cotter — An in-depth look into organic mushroom farming and how mushrooms can be incorporated into daily life to improve health, the environment, and small-scale agricultural practices.
The Future is Fungi by Michael Lim & Yun Shu — An exploration of the past, present, and future impact of fungi on food, medicine, mental health, and environmental remediation.
Further Reading
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