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Concerted Evaluation of Pesticides in Soils of Extensive Grassland Sites and Organic and Conventional Vegetable Fields Facilitates the Identification of Major Input Processes


Riedo, Judith; Herzog, Chantal; Banerjee, Samiran; Fenner, Kathrin; Walder, Florian; van der Heijden, Marcel G A; Bucheli, Thomas D (2022). Concerted Evaluation of Pesticides in Soils of Extensive Grassland Sites and Organic and Conventional Vegetable Fields Facilitates the Identification of Major Input Processes. Environmental Science & Technology, 56(19):13686-13695.

Abstract

The intensive use of pesticides and their subsequent distribution to the environment and non-target organisms is of increasing concern. So far, little is known about the occurrence of pesticides in soils of untreated areas─such as ecological refuges─as well as the processes contributing to this unwanted pesticide contamination. In this study, we analyzed the presence and abundance of 46 different pesticides in soils from extensively managed grassland sites, as well as organically and conventionally managed vegetable fields (60 fields in total). Pesticides were found in all soils, including the extensive grassland sites, demonstrating a widespread background contamination of soils with pesticides. The results suggest that after conversion from conventional to organic farming, the organic fields reach pesticide levels as low as those of grassland sites not until 20 years later. Furthermore, the different pesticide composition patterns in grassland sites and organically managed fields facilitated differentiation between long-term persistence of residues and diffuse contamination processes, that is, short-scale redistribution (spray drift) and long-scale dispersion (atmospheric deposition), to offsite contamination.

Abstract

The intensive use of pesticides and their subsequent distribution to the environment and non-target organisms is of increasing concern. So far, little is known about the occurrence of pesticides in soils of untreated areas─such as ecological refuges─as well as the processes contributing to this unwanted pesticide contamination. In this study, we analyzed the presence and abundance of 46 different pesticides in soils from extensively managed grassland sites, as well as organically and conventionally managed vegetable fields (60 fields in total). Pesticides were found in all soils, including the extensive grassland sites, demonstrating a widespread background contamination of soils with pesticides. The results suggest that after conversion from conventional to organic farming, the organic fields reach pesticide levels as low as those of grassland sites not until 20 years later. Furthermore, the different pesticide composition patterns in grassland sites and organically managed fields facilitated differentiation between long-term persistence of residues and diffuse contamination processes, that is, short-scale redistribution (spray drift) and long-scale dispersion (atmospheric deposition), to offsite contamination.

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Additional indexing

Item Type:Journal Article, refereed, original work
Communities & Collections:07 Faculty of Science > Department of Chemistry
07 Faculty of Science > Department of Plant and Microbial Biology
07 Faculty of Science > Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center
Dewey Decimal Classification:580 Plants (Botany)
Scopus Subject Areas:Physical Sciences > General Chemistry
Physical Sciences > Environmental Chemistry
Uncontrolled Keywords:Environmental Chemistry, General Chemistry
Language:English
Date:4 October 2022
Deposited On:24 Oct 2022 14:28
Last Modified:15 Mar 2023 04:30
Publisher:American Chemical Society (ACS)
ISSN:0013-936X
OA Status:Hybrid
Free access at:PubMed ID. An embargo period may apply.
Publisher DOI:https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.2c02413
PubMed ID:36099238
Project Information:
  • : FunderAgroscope
  • : Grant ID
  • : Project Title
  • Content: Published Version
  • Language: English
  • Licence: Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)