Temporal variation of pesticide mixtures in rivers of three agricultural watersheds during a major drought in the Western Cape, South Africa

South Africa is the leading pesticide user in Sub-Saharan Africa. However, little is known about the occurrence of pesticide mixtures in surface water and potential environmental risks in Africa. This study investigated the occurrence of pesticides mixtures in three watersheds during a drought year in South Africa. The study was conducted in the Krom River, Berg River and Hex River watersheds within larger agriculture systems in the Western Cape. Pesticide spray records were collected from 38 farms. A total of 21 passive water samplers (styrenedivinylbenzene disks (SDB)) were deployed, each for two weeks per month, over seven sampling rounds during the main pesticide application period between July 2017 and January 2018. Samples were analyzed for 248 pesticide compounds using LC-HR-MS/MS. Pesticide occurrence was analyzed for temporal agreement with pesticide spraying events (Cohen's kappa) and correlation with rainfall patterns and river discharge (Pearson correlation (r p )). Pesticide time-weighted average concentrations were estimated and compared to environmental quality standards (EQS). According to the farm spray records, 96 different pesticides were sprayed during the sampling period and differed considerably between the three study areas, seasons and crops grown. In total, 53 compounds were detected in river water. We detected 39% of compounds from the spraying records and demonstrated close temporal correlations of seasonal patterns for 11 pesticide compounds between reported on spraying records and observations in the streams (kappa = 0.90). However, 23 detected pesticides were not found on spray records, many of them being herbicides. Most of the estimated two-week average pesticide concentrations were below 40 ng/L. The insecticides imidacloprid, thiacloprid, chlorpyrifos and acetamiprid and the herbicide terbuthylazine exceeded at least once their EQS 58-fold (EQS 13 ng/L), 12-fold (EQS 10 ng/L), 9-fold (EQS 0.46 ng/L), 5-fold (EQS 24 ng/L) and 3-fold (EQS 220 ng/L), respectively. Our study substantially widens the view on pesticide pollution in surface water compared to previous studies in Sub-Saharan Africa by targeting more than 200 pesticides using passive sampling systems. This broad assessment revealed the presence of 53 compounds, some of them in high concentrations, indicating possible adverse effects on biota and the quality of the ecosystem. Whether the observed concentration levels in the year 2017 were exceptional due to the lowest ever recorded rainfall and river discharge needs to be tested with additional data to better understand how pesticide pollution levels manifest under average rainfall and river discharge conditions

Vermicomposting Of Palm Oil Mill Effluent (POME) Sludge And Effects Of Vermicompost On Oil Palm Seedling Growth

The present study is about vermicomposting of palm oil mill effluent (POME) sludge as a low C/N ratio material and effects of vermicompost on oil palm seedling growth. Experiment on vermicomposting of low C/N ratio materials alone, without mixing, is very limited. There are limited literatures that have looked into this matter. Kajian ini adalah berkaitan tentang pengkomposan vermi bagi enapcemar efluen kilang minyak sawit dan kesan-kesan vermikompos ke atas pertumbuhan anak kelapa sawit. Eksperimen terhadap pengkomposan vermi hanya bagi bahan rendah nisbah C/N, tanpa percampuran, adalah sangat terhad. Hanya terdapat beberapa sumber sahaja yang meniliti kajian ini

Monitoreo de residuos de plaguicidas en aguas subterráneas para consumo humano en la provincia de Neuquén, Patagonia norte, Argentina

La provincia de Neuquén está ubicada al oeste de Argentina, en el extremo norte de la Patagonia. En esta provincia, la información sobre la distribución y calidad de las aguas subterráneas es muy escasa y el monitoreo de la calidad de los recursos hídricos no se realiza periódicamente. Es bien sabido que en esta región se aplican varias familias de pesticidas, tales como organofosforados, carbamatos y neonicotinoides, para mantener la calidad y la producción de los cultivos. La aplicación de pesticidas por equipos de pulverización en tierra, las condiciones climáticas y las propiedades físicas y químicas de estos compuestos, facilitan que una fracción sustancial del ingrediente activo pueda llegar a las fuentes de aire, suelo y agua. El objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar la presencia de plaguicidas en aguas subterráneas, con el fin de proporcionar información sobre la calidad del agua para consumo humano. Diecisiete organofosforados y cuatro carbamatos fueron monitoreados entre 2014 y 2015 por cromatografía de gases con detector de nitrógeno-fósforo, en muestras de aguas subterráneas recogidas de pozos profundos ubicados en zonas rurales correspondientes a las ciudades de Senillosa, Plottier, Vista Alegre y Centenario, en la provincia de Neuquén. Estas ciudades son zonas agrícolas intensivas, que abastecen a la región norte de Patagonia con frutas y verduras frescas, y donde el agua subterránea se utiliza para consumo humano. En este estudio, la concentración de organofosforados y carbamatos fue menor a 0.020 y 0.030 μg/L, respectivamente, e inferior a los límites aceptables establecidos por la guías para la calidad del agua potable de Canadá (2017) y de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (2011) para estos plaguicidas.Neuquén province is located in the west of Argentina, at the northern end of Patagonia. In this province, information regarding groundwater distribution and quality is very scarce, and the monitoring of water resources quality is not carried out periodically. It is well known that several pesticide families, such us organophosphates, carbamates and neonicotinoids, are applied in this region to maintain crop quality and production. Pesticide application by ground-based spraying equipment, the climatic conditions and the physical and chemical properties of these compounds, facilitate that a substantial fraction of the active ingredient may reach air, soil and water sources. The objective of this study was to evaluate the pesticide presence in groundwater, in order to provide information about the water quality for human consumption. Seventeen organophosphate and four carbamate residues were monitored from 2014 to 2015 by gas chroma-tography with a nitrogen-phosphorus detector, in groundwater samples collected from depth wells, located in rural areas corresponding to Senillosa, Plottier, Vista Alegre and Centenario cities, in Neuquén province. These cities are intensive agricultural areas, which supply the North Patagonia region with fresh fruits and vegetables, and where groundwater is utilized for human consumption. In this study, organophosphate and carbamate concentrations were below 0.020 and 0.030 µg/L, respectively, and lower than the accepted limits established by the Guidelines for Canadian drinking water quality (2017) and the Guidelines for drinking water quality (2011) of the World Health Organization for these pesticides.Fil: Sánchez, Victoria Guadalupe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ingeniería. Departamento de Química; ArgentinaFil: Gutiérrez, César Argentino. Instituto Nacional de Tecnologia Agropecuaria. Centro Regional Cordoba. Estacion Experimental Agropecuaria Manfredi. Agencia de Extension Rural San Francisco.; ArgentinaFil: Gomez, Diego Sebastian. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias del Ambiente y la Salud. Departamento de Ciencias del Ambiente; ArgentinaFil: Loewy, Ruth Miriam. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue; ArgentinaFil: Guiñazu Alaniz, Natalia Lorena. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Patagonia Norte. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias. Centro de Investigaciones en Toxicología Ambiental y Agrobiotecnología del Comahue; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Comahue. Facultad de Ciencias del Ambiente y la Salud. Departamento de Ciencias del Ambiente; Argentin

Long-term monitoring of pesticide residues on public sites: A regional approach to survey and reduce spray drift

Plant protection strongly increased food safety and agricultural productivity, but with societal and environmental costs as the downside. Especially the contamination of non-target areas via spray drift represents an adverse side-effect. Residential zones and playgrounds are so-called “sensitive zones”, where spray drift is considered to have an increased potential for human health risk. To study the residue profile potentially associated with spray drift we analyzed data of a residue monitoring program in South Tyrol (Northern Italy). From 2018 to 2021, 39 playgrounds were analyzed multiple times per year for the presence and concentration of pesticide residues on grass samples. In a total of 399 samples, we identified 39 different residues deriving primarily from agricultural production. Mean concentration (0.0645 mg kg−1, SD: ± 0.1013 mg kg−1) and comparison to Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) of food, revealed that 98.2% of the residues were in the range of MRLs and close to the analytical limit of quantification. We found that 6 out of 334 residues had relatively elevated concentrations clearly above the MRLs. Finally, a time series analysis of the study period revealed a significant decrease in the number of detected residues and their concentration by 72% and 78%, respectively. In the last year of this study, playgrounds showed on average 1.46 residues (SD: ± 1.252) with a mean concentration of 0.012 mg kg−1 (SD: ± 0.025), which is almost equal to the limit of detection (0.01 mg kg−1). The presented results demonstrate that 1) spray drift decreased significantly within 4-year and that 2) the introduced measures to decrease spray drift have been effective. Consequently, these results imply 3) that improved farming practice represents an important leverage point of further spray drift reduction

Consumers exposure assessment of pesticide residues in food: current status and future perspective in Lombardy

La presente tesi descrive i risultati del programma di controllo dei pesticidi in regione Lombardia da 1996 a 2008 ed analizza i dati per calcolarne, con metodi diversi, la valutazione dell’esposizione del consumatore. 9387 campioni sono stati analizzati con un numero di campioni irregolari pari all’1%. Il numero di campioni senza residuo era pari al 69% ed il numero di campioni con i residui al di sotto del valore limite stabilito per legge era del 30%. Successivamente per capire l'esposizione dei consumatori a residui di antiparassitari si è utilizzato un metodo deterministico sviluppato da EFSA (PRIMo). È stato trovato che fra i campioni irregolari analizzati, solo 31 potrebbero causare il danno alla salute del consumatore. Un’ ulteriore analisi è stata quella di effettuare una valutazione con metodo probabilistico (Creme) calcolando l'esposizione cumulativa di antiparassitari sulla salute dei consumatori. Coem primo passo, residui di uno stesso pesticida trovato su campioni di patate sono stati inseriti nel software. Inoltre, campioni contenenti residui di pesticidi organofosfati sono stati inseriti nel software accoppiati con i dati italiani di consumo. In entrambi i casi, la valutazione cumulativa probabilistica dimostrava un adeguato livello di sicurezza per adulti e bambini.The presented thesis describes the results of the pesticide monitoring programme in Lombardy Region from 1996 to 2008 and analyses the data gathered to calculate consumer exposure assessment with different approaches. A total of 9387 samples were analysed and the number of irregular samples was equal to 1%. The number of samples without residues was 69% and the number of samples with residues within the MRL was 30%. A further step to understand the exposure of consumers to residue of pesticides was obtained with the use of a deterministic approach developed by EFSA (PRIMo Model). It was found that among the detected irregular samples, only 31 might cause harm to the health of the consumer. An additional step was constituted by the use of one probabilistic method (Creme Software) to calculate the cumulative exposure of pesticides for the consumers. As a first step, residues of Chlorprofam were plotted in the software on samples of potato. In addition, samples containing residues of Organophosphates were also plotted along with the Italian consumption data. In both the case studies, the probabilistic acute cumulative assessment indicated that the intake, for adults and toddlers was below the set toxicological endpoint