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# Cyanobacteria and fungi can stabilize quartz tailings—but the pairing matters
- URL: https://intelligence.wildlandseco.com/2026-09-26-biocrust-tailings-cyanobacteria-fungi/
- Published: 2026-09-26T11:04:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-26T11:04:01.000Z
- Author: Benjamin Worlund
- Tags: biocrust, mine tailings, cyanobacteria, fungi, restoration, Soils, microbial ecology, Mining, #ecological-intelligence, #brief-2026-09-26, #global-radar, #peer-reviewed, #geo-global

Evidence

Peer-reviewed

Geography

Controlled quartz-tailings experiment

System

Mine tailings / restoration

## WHAT THE EVIDENCE SAYS

A 90-day experiment tested individual and paired cyanobacterial and fungal inocula on quartz sand tailings. Several combinations promoted colonization, extracellular polymeric substances and particle binding, but performance varied among pairings.

## WHY IT MATTERS / OUR READ

Biocrust engineering may offer a biological stabilization pathway for some mine wastes, but the treatment is a community-design problem rather than a generic inoculation step.

## CAVEATS / UNCERTAINTY

This was a controlled 90-day experiment on quartz tailings. Field persistence, erosion resistance under weather, contaminant context, vegetation establishment and scalability were not demonstrated.

## SOURCE

Microbial Ecology  
[View original evidence ↗](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00248-026-02887-z?ref=intelligence.wildlandseco.com)

From the Morning Brief · 2026-09-26

[Read the full Morning Brief →](https://intelligence.wildlandseco.com/morning-brief-2026-09-26/)