Gary Bañuelos

USA | Soil Restoration

Dr. Gary Bañuelos is a plant and soil scientist at the USDA-ARS Water Management Research Unit and an adjunct professor at UC California and CSU Fresno. Renowned for his work in phytoremediation, Dr. Bañuelos has focused on developing alternative crops and bio-based products for poor-quality soils. His research began with "green technology" in Germany, testing radioactive vegetables post-Chernobyl. He has since pioneered methods to remediate soils laden with selenium, boron, and salinity in California. His work includes the development of salt- and boron-tolerant prickly pear fruit cultivars, aiming to make unproductive soils viable for agriculture. Dr. Bañuelos holds a doctorate in Agriculture/Plant Nutrition from Hohenheim University, Germany.