The present investigation deals with the elaboration in homogenous conditions of new cross-linked, hydroxyl cellulose (HEC) based material. Further, its application as a new eco-friendly low-cost efficient adsorbent of hazardous metal ions from an aquatic environment is treated. In this respect, the functionalization of HEC has been carried out using EDTA as a cross-linking agent exploiting its high capacity to chelate heavy metal ions in aqueous solutions. The proposed structure of the new crosslinked material (HECD) was investigated using structural analyses (FTIR-ATR vibrational spectroscopy and CP/MAS 13C NMR Spectroscopy). Also, the thermal and crystalline behaviours of unmodified and modified HEC were studied using thermogravimetric (TG and DTG) and DRX patterns. In addition, SEM images were recorded to demonstrate the changes expected at the morphological and textural level. Furthermore, the adsorption capacity of Pb (II), Cu (II), Cd (II) and Zn (II) ions from aqueous solutions by HECD was investigated using batch technique and optimized according to metal concentration, pH, contact time, ionic selectivity and regenerability. Thus, to examine the mechanism of adsorption, the experimental data is fitted to kinetic, isothermal, and thermodynamic modelling.