Impact of distillery effluent irrigation on the performance of Pisum sativum L.: insights into growth dynamics and biochemical alterations

Industrial effluents are a significant source of water pollution, posing substantial environmental and public health risks. The use of effluent-based irrigation is a key strategy for advancing sustainable development goals (SDGs), offering a solution to water scarcity while improving agricultural productivity. The present study evaluates the tolerance of Pisum sativum L. var. Rachna to varying concentrations of diverse distillery effluents at different time intervals [30, 60, 90, and 120 days after sowing (DAS)]. The impact of untreated, primary treated, and secondary treated distillery effluents was observed on several growth parameters, photosynthetic pigments, and biochemical characteristics of the plant. A comprehensive analysis of the physicochemical characteristics of distillery effluents at concentrations of 25%, 50%, 75%, and 100% was also carried out. Among the various types of distillery effluents and control (tap water), secondary treated effluent at 50% concentration (ST50) showed a significant positive impact on the overall performance of P. sativum. Growth parameters such as plant length (145.81 cm), plant biomass (9.641 g), and biochemical parameters like reducing sugars (9.323 mg g-1 fw) and ascorbic acid (0.824 mg 100 g-1 fw) showed maximum value at 120 DAS, while photosynthetic pigments, chlorophyll-a (1.574 mg g-1 fw), total chlorophyll (2.301 mg g-1 fw), and carotenoids (1.081 mg g-1 fw), displayed maximum value at 60 DAS. In contrast, the untreated effluent at 100% concentration (UT100) showed the lowest values for growth parameters, photosynthetic pigments, and biochemical parameters. The study carried out at the box level, shows that irrigation of P. sativum with 50% distillery effluent obtained after the secondary treatment stage yields better results in comparison to control, untreated distillery effluent, and the effluent obtained after the primary treatment, highlighting its potential for scaling up to further field trials.