Mycofiltration is the pioneering technique of using fungi to filter out pollutants from water.  First developed in the USA by Paul Stamets, we are trialling it here along the River Wandle for the first time in the UK!  We have put several ‘mycofilters’ around surface water outfalls that drain into the river to capture pollutants such as heavy metals, hydrocarbons, bacteria and excess nutrients and will be monitoring their effectiveness over the coming year. A mycofilter is basically a hessian sack filled with wet straw and wood chip and mycelium (the non-fruiting part of fungi).  They look a bit like slightly mouldy sandbags, but don’t let that put you off!!  They are doing important work. Getting to the point of being able to install mycofilters along carefully selected study sites by the Wandle took several stages Fungi Perfecti founder and director of research, Dr. Paul Stamets, announced today the release of mycofiltration and mycorestoration as public domain terms and technologies. The move formalizes a long-standing company policy of “teaching the teachers” the art and developing science of mycofiltration through annual seminars, workshops, and lectures. Stamets made the move to fully disclose mycofiltration as public domain to clear up any remaining doubt about the intellectual property status of the technology.