Comment by einpoklum

I was immediately reminded of Hayao Miyazaki's post-apocalyptic manga and anime film, "Nausicaa of the valley of the winds", where the fungus-and-spore-filled jungle, toxic and lethal to humans, actually serves as a sequestering and purification agent for the ecosystems affected by some apocalyptic, possibly nuclear, catastrophe.

http://www.nausicaa.net/wiki/Nausica%C3%A4_of_the_Valley_of_...

https://ghibli.fandom.com/wiki/Nausicaä_of_the_Valley_of_the...