Karen (UR) Duckweed: A Story of Bioremediation

This is the story of the little "weed" that can; Duckweed.  The world's smallest flowering plant.  Lemna minor in the family Lemnaceae.  Obviously considered a "weed", after all it's common name is Duckweed..  In general, a plant is named a "weed" when it is a nuisance.  But is it really?  Yes and no.  Yes, because it reproduces like crazy.  No, because it has the ability to filter excess nutrients and impurities out of water. It's everywhere, in Florida, you can see it in almost every pond and reservoir.  That crystal clear water in those reservoirs, well, duckweed may be the reason.
Not only does it filter excess nutrients and impurities out of the water, but it is edible!  Animals and even people can eat it and in some Asian countries they have been growing it and using it for centuries. 

I think because I have been around horses my entire life, my interest in livestock and farming comes naturally.  Having lived in many different areas of the United States and also in other countries, I have seen first hand how difficult it can be for small land-holders and subsistence farmers to irrigate crops and feed their livestock. In many under-developed countries, subsistence farmers can not do both.  I'd like to see how Duckweed could be used for small scale farm holdings.  I'm not exactly sure of my scientific question, there are too many possibilities, I still have to narrow it down.

We know that pollution and entrophication from fertilizers and waste is a monumental problem. We also know that feeding livestock and people can also be a monumental issue. Can Duckweed be part of the solution?  There has been a lot of research, small scale and large scale, into whether using Duckweed as a water filter and fodder for livestock is a viable  part of the answer.  

The Missouri Botanical Gardens has a lot of information and links to some of the research.

The University of Florida, Center for Aquatic Plants and Invasive Plants has the Taxonomic information of the species most common to Florida.