Fate of Pesticides

in the
Environment

MINA NEJADAMIN
BIOM 430 Spring
11

Overview
o Xenobiotics
o Pesticides
o Fate of pesticides in the environment

o Aerobic & Anaerobic Biodegradation

o Pesticides as water pollutants
o Human health effects of pesticides
o Ecological effects of pesticides
o Pesticide monitoring in surface water
o Pesticide management and control

Xenobiotics
o stranger to life by its dictionary meaning
o a chemical that is not produced and found
in significant concentrations also does not
exist long terms in organisms by its
scientific meaning
o Exist in different forms:
Certain fertilizers and agrochemicals
Environmental contaminants, such as
industrial and domestic wastes and effluents
By-products of biological processes, such as
fermentation, distillation and animal
production

Xenobiotics
o pesticides, Polychlorinated biphenyls
(PCBs), dyes, and chlorinated solvents
o Structurally related, to natural compounds
o Suspected of being carcinogenic
o Used as industrial solvents, degreasing
agents, and insulators in electrical
transformers

The production rates & major uses of

Xenobiotics

Most widely distributed xenobiotics are pesticides.

Pesticides
o any substance intended to control, destroy,
or attract a pest
Algicide -- algae
Fungicide -- fungi
Herbicide -- weeds
Insecticide -- insects
Miticide --mites
Rodenticide rodents

Pesticide Movement

Fate of pesticides in
the environment
o Adsorption
o Transfer
o Degradation
o Microbial degradation
o Chemical degradation
o Photodegradation

Fate of pesticides in
the environment
o Adsorption: the adverse attraction
between soil particles and chemicals
o Effecting factors: organic matter and clay
levels in soil, particle surface area, available
sites for binding of pesticides, and moisture

o Transfer: Volatilization, runoff and leaching

are the most widely used types
o Effecting factors: temperature, humidity, air
movement, and vapor pressure

Fate of pesticides in
the environment
o Degradation: breakdown of pesticides
o Microbial degradation
o Chemical degradation
o Photodegradation

o Microbial Degradation: occurs when

microorganisms such as, fungi and bacteria
use pesticides as a food source
o occur rapidly and under the optimum soil
conditions that maximize the microbial growth
o affected from the pesticides, the frequency of
pesticides influence the rapidity

Fate of pesticides in
the environment
o Chemical degradation: the breakdown of
pesticides with chemical reactions in the soil,
living organisms do not involve to the process
o the rapidity of the reactions are influenced by
temperature, moisture, pH, adsorption, chemical
and physical properties of the both pesticide
and soil
o hydrolysis, the pesticide reacts with water
during the process

Fate of pesticides in
the environment
o Photodegradation: the degradation by
using sunlight
o
o
o
o

The intensity and spectrum of sunlight

length of exposure
the properties of the pesticide
the application site
o Pesticides applied to foliage are more exposed
to sunlight than pesticides that are incorporated
into the soil

Aerobic & Anaerobic

Biodegradation
WHY ANAEROBIC BIODEGRADATION?
o aerobic processes require oxygen and the oxygen
delivery systems used in these processes are very
expensive
o in some conditions such as degradation of
contaminated groundwater and PCBs only
anaerobic bacteria can be used to gain more
efficient processes
o in most cases in order to make an aerobic
degradation process, an anaerobic process is
needed primarily

Pesticides as water
pollutants
o The impact on water quality
is associated with the following factors:
o Active ingredient in the pesticide formulation
o Contaminants that exist as impurities in the
active ingredient
o Additives that are mixed with the active
ingredient (wetting agents, diluents or
solvents, extenders, adhesives, buffers,
preservatives and emulsifiers)
o Degradate that is formed during chemical,
microbial or photochemical degradation of
the active ingredient.

The ecological impacts of pesticides in water are determined

by the following: criteria:

Human health effects of pesticides

o Human health effects are caused by:
o Skin contact: handling of pesticide products
o Inhalation: breathing of dust or spray
o Ingestion: pesticides consumed as a contaminant on/in
food or in water

o For the majority of the population, a principal

vector is through ingestion of food that is
contaminated by pesticides
o Degradation of water quality by pesticide runoff
has two principal human health impacts
o consumption of fish and shellfish that are
contaminated by pesticides
o the direct consumption of pesticide-contaminated
water

Ecological effects of pesticides

o Bioconcentration: The movement of a
chemical from the surrounding medium into
an organism
o Biomagnification: The increasing
concentration of a chemical as food energy
is transformed within the food chain
o Very high concentrations can be observed in
top predators, including man
o The important point is that many of these
effects are chronic (not lethal), are often not
noticed by casual observers, yet have
consequences for the entire food chain

Pesticide monitoring in surface

water

o Monitoring data for pesticides are generally

poor in much of the world and especially in
developing countries
o Many developing countries have difficulty
carrying out organic chemical analysis due to
o problems of inadequate facilities
o impure reagents
o financial constraints

o New techniques using immunoassay

procedures for presence/absence of specific
pesticides may reduce costs and increase
reliability

Pesticide management and

control
o The European
experience
Examples
& Experiences
o The Netherlands National Institute of Public Health and
Environmental Protection concluded that "groundwater is
threatened by pesticides in all European states.
o This is obvious both from the available monitoring data
and calculations concerning pesticide load, soil sensitivity
and leaching
o It has been calculated that on 65% of all agricultural land
the standard for the sum of pesticides (0.5; m g/l) will be
exceeded
o In recognition of pesticide abuse and of environmental and
public health impacts the European countries have
adopted a variety of measures that include (FAO/ECE,
1991):

Examples &
Experiences
o The Danish
example
o In 1986 the Danish Government initiated an Action
Plan for sustainable agriculture which would
prevent the use of pesticides for two purposes
(WWF, 1992)
o Safeguard human health
o Protect the environment
o The objective was to achieve a 50% reduction in
the use of agricultural pesticides by 1997 from the
average amount of pesticides used during the
period 1981-85
o This was to be measured by a decline in total sales
(by weight) of the active ingredients and, decrease
in frequency of application

Summary
Pesticides can have a negative influence on
environment especially water resources, public
health and wildlife
Be aware of the possible means of the pesticide
transport from the target site to an off target site
common sense, concerning handling, mixing,
applying and disposing of pesticides and pesticide
containers
Follow labeled directions in order to minimize risk
associated with negative pesticide affects on the
environment and public health

Works cited:

1- Corbett, J. R. The Biochemical Mode of Action of Pesticides. London: Academic, 1974. Print.

2- Goodman, B. A., Late M J. Allison, K. J. Oparka, and J. R. Hillman. "Xenobiotics: Their Activity and Mobility in Plants and Soils." Journal of the Science
of Food and Agriculture 59.1 (1992): 1-20. Print.

3- Zhang, Chunlong, and George N. Bennett. "Biodegradation of Xenobiotics by Anaerobic Bacteria." Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 67.5
(2005): 600-18. Print.

4- Hill, David W., and Perry L. McCarty. "Anaerobic Degradation of Selected Chlorinated Hydrocarbon Pesticides." Water Pollution Control Federation
39.8 (1967): 1259-277. Print.

5- Barnard, C., S. Daberkow, M. Padgitt, M. Smith, and N. Uri. "Alternative Measures of Pesticide Use." Science of The Total Environment 203.3 (1997):
229-44. Print.

6- Fishel, Fred. "Pesticides and the Environment." MU Guide 91.9: 1-6. Print.

7- Matsumura, Fumio, and Murti C. R. Krishna. Biodegradation of Pesticides. New York: Plenum, 1982. Print.

8- Kuhr, Ronald J., and Naoki Motoyama. Pesticides and the Future: Minimizing Chronic Exposure of Humans and the Environment. Amsterdam: IOS,
1998. Print.

9- Menzie, C. M. "Fate of Pesticides in the Environment." Annual Review of Entomology 17.1 (1972): 199-222. Print.

10- Arnold, D. J., and G. G. Briggs. "Fate of Pesticides in Soil: Predictive and Practical Aspects." Progress in Pesticide Biochemistry and
Toxicology 7 (1990): 101-22. Print.

11- Mogensen AS, Haagensen F, Ahring BK (2003b) Anaerobic degradation of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate. Environ Toxicol Chem
22:706711

12- Schink B (2002) Anaerobic digestion: concepts, limits and per- spectives. Water Sci Technol 45:18

13- Baker KH, Herson DS (1994) Bioremediation. McGraw Hill, New York, NY

14- Master ER, Lai VW-M, Kuipers B, Cullen WR, Mohn WW (2002) Sequential anaerobic-aerobic treatment of soil contaminated with
weathered Aroclor 1260. Environ Sci Technol 36:100103

15- Williams PP (1977) Metabolism of synthetic organic pesticides by anaerobic microorganisms. Residue Rev 66:63135

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