Spatio-temporal changes in agrochemical inputs and the risk assessment before and after the grain-for-green policy in China

China’s Grain-For-Green Policy (GFGP) of returning marginal cropland to forest or grassland is one of the most important large-scale initiatives to combat land degradation in its ecologically vulnerable regions. In order to maintain and increase crop production from decreasing areas of cropland, substantial spatio-temporal changes in agrochemical inputs have occurred, which have strongly influenced the ecological and environmental status of land in China. Based on the agrochemical inputs (chemical fertilizer, pesticide, plastic sheeting, and agricultural diesel oil) at the provincial level between 1993 and 2009, cluster analysis and gravity center modeling were used to trace these spatio-temporal changes. A regional comparative study was also undertaken to investigate the changes in the relative size of agrochemical inputs in the eastern, central, and western regions of China. It was found that the agrochemical inputs increased considerably at the nation level after the GFGP, which in order of increasing rate were: plastic sheeting > agricultural diesel oil > pesticide > chemical fertilizer. The gravity centers of agrochemical inputs moved substantially towards the northwest or west during the latter period of GFGP and regional comparative analysis showed that the agrochemical inputs increased substantially in the western region between 2004 and 2009. The ecological degradation caused by the expansion of the area devoted to crop production in the western region and the potential risk of agricultural non-point pollution caused by the increasing agrochemical inputs are the main factors restricting this area’s sustainable development.     

Monitoring of pesticide residues levels in fresh vegetable form Heibei Province,North China

In this study, 226 samples of seven types of domestic vegetables collected from several vegetable-growing regions in Hebei Province of China were tested for the presence of 38 different agricultural pesticides using a gas chromatograph equipped with electron capture and nitrogen phosphorus detectors. The aim of this study was to investigate the distribution of pesticides in main vegetables from Hebei Province. Results showed that, in 65.93 % of the samples, no residues were found, 31.42 % of the samples contained pesticide residues at or below the maximum residue levels (MRLs), and 2.65 % of the samples contained pesticide residues above MRL. The most frequently detected pesticides were acephate (31), followed by cyhalothrin (15), bifenthrin (8), omethoate (6), isazophos (6), dimethoate (5), chlorpyrifos (2), and malathion (1). Some (1.33 %) of the samples contained multiple residues. The results provide useful information on the current contamination status of a key agricultural area in North China, and points to the continuous monitoring and strict regulation of pesticide use on vegetables are necessary.     

Pesticide Use and Residual Occurrence in Thailand

This paper addresses pesticide use, environmental problems, and regulations in Thailand. Annually, Thailand imports several thousand metric tons of herbicides, fungicides, and insecticides. Agricultural goods are among the country's primary exports. Over the past decade, Thailand's agricultural sector has shifted from labor- to machine-intensive farming practices. Pressures to sustain high crop yields have led to heavy usage of pesticides. Residues, especially organochlorine and organophosphate compounds, have been found in soil, water, and agricultural products throughout the country. Occupational exposure and suicide are the main causes of pesticide poisoning to Thailand's residents. Recognizing the growing problem, Thailand's government has enacted environmental laws and education programs aimed at minimizing adverse effects of pesticides.     

Spatio-temporal pattern and rationality of land reclamation and cropland abandonment in mid-eastern Inner Mongolia of China in 1990�C2005

The Mid-eastern Inner Mongolia of China, a typical agro-pastoral transitional zone, has undergone rapid agricultural land use changes including land reclamation and cropland abandonment in past decades due to growing population and food demand, climatic variability, and land use policy such as the "Grain for Green" Project (GFG Project). It is significant to the regional ecology and sustainability to examine the pattern and its rationality of land use change. The processes of land reclamation and cropland abandonment were accessed by using land use change dataset for four periods of 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2005, derived from the interpretation of Landsat TM images. And then the rationality of land reclamation and cropland abandonment was analyzed based on the habitat suitability for cultivation. The results indicated that: (1) land reclamation was the dominant form of agricultural land use change from 1990 to 2005, the total cropland area increased from 64,954.64 km(2) in 1990 to 76,258.51 km(2) in 2005; However, the speed of land reclamation decreased while cropland abandonment increased around 2000. The Land Reclamation Degree decreased from 1995-2000 to 2000-2005, meanwhile, Cropland Abandonment Degree increased. (2) As for the habitat suitability levels, moderately and marginally suitable levels had largest areas where cropland was widespread. Pattern of agricultural land use trended to become more rational due to the decrease of land reclamation area in low suitable levels and the increase of cropland abandonment in unsuitable area after 2000. (3) The habitat suitability-based rationality analysis of agricultural land use implicated that the GFG Project should take cultivation habitat suitability assessment into account.     

Spatial Relationships Between Water Quality and Pesticide Application Rates in Agricultural Watersheds

Pesticide applications to agricultural lands in California, USA, are reported to a central data base, while data on water and sediment quality are collected by a number of monitoring programs. Data from both sources are geo-referenced, allowing spatial analysis of relationships between pesticide application rates and the chemical and biological condition of water bodies. This study collected data from 12 watersheds, selected to represent a range of pesticide usage. Water quality parameters were measured during six surveys of stream sites receiving runoff from the selected watershed areas. This study had three objectives: to evaluate the usefulness of pesticide application data in selecting regional monitoring sites, to provide information for generating and testing hypotheses about pesticide fate and effects, and to determine whether in-stream nitrate concentration was a useful surrogate indicator for regional monitoring of toxic substances. Significant correlations were observed between pesticide application rates and in-stream pesticide concentrations (p < 0.05) and toxicity (p < 0.10). In-stream nitrate concentrations were not significantly correlated with either the amount of pesticides applied, in-stream pesticide concentrations, or in-stream toxicity (all p > 0.30). Neither total watershed area nor the area in which pesticide usage was reported correlated significantly with the amount of pesticides applied, in-stream pesticide concentrations, or in-stream toxicity (all p > 0.14). In-stream pesticide concentrations and effects were more closely related to the intensity of pesticide use than to the area under cultivation.     

Assessment of pesticide residues in vegetables from the Western Usambara and Uruguru Mountains in Tanzania

Assessment of levels of pesticide residues in vegetables was carried out in some villages in the Western Usambara and Uluguru Mountains of Tanzania where varieties of vegetables are grown. Tomatoes and cabbages were the most popular enterprise grown all year round and therefore were selected as the model crops for this study. Analysis of the cleaned sample extracts on a gas chromatography with electron capture detector (GC-ECD) and confirmation on the Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS) revealed dominance of organochlorine pesticides. Organophosphorous pesticides (parathion and marathion) were only detected in some samples, however, in most cases with higher concentrations compared to organochlorine pesticides. Levels of pesticide residues detected in vegetables were up to: parathion 5.07 μg/Kg, marathion 3.73 μg/Kg, α-endosulfan 0.32 μg/Kg, β-endosulfan 0.53 μg/Kg, dieldrin 1.36 μg/Kg, γ-HCH 0.25 μg/Kg, α-HCH 0.09 μg/Kg, and p, p′-DDT 0.64 μg/Kg. These results clearly show that vegetables are contaminated with different pesticide residues. However, the total levels of pesticide residues in both tomatoes and cabbages are lower than their respective codex alimentarius maximum residue levels (MRLs). This means that the vegetables produced in the area are suitable for human consumption.     

Effect of long-term application of treated sewage water on heavy metal accumulation in vegetables grown in Northern India

Use of industrial and wastewater for irrigation is on the rise in India and other developing countries because of scarcity of good-quality irrigation water. Wastewaters contain plant nutrients that favour crop growth but leave a burden of heavy metals which can enter the food chain and is a cause of great concern. The present study was undertaken on the long-term impact of irrigation with treated sewage water for growing vegetables and the potential health risk associated with consumption of such vegetable. Treated sewage water (TSW), groundwater (GW), soil and plant samples were collected from peri urban vegetable growing areas of Northern India (Varanasi) and analysed to assess the long-term effect of irrigation with TSW on Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb build-up in soils and its subsequent transfer into commonly grown vegetable crops. Results indicate that TSW was richer in essential plant nutrients but contained Cd, Cr and Ni in amounts well above the permissible limits for its use as irrigation water. Long-term application of TSW resulted in significant build-up of total and DTPA extractable Cd, Cr, Ni and Pb over GW irrigated sites. TSW also resulted in slight lowering in pH, increase in organic carbon (1.6 g kg^− 1) and cation exchange capacity (5.2 cmol kg^− 1). The tissue metal concentration and relative efficiency of transfer of heavy metals from soil to plant (transfer factor) for various groups of vegetables were worked out. Radish, turnip and spinach were grouped as hyper accumulator of heavy metals whereas brinjal and cauliflower accumulated less heavy metals. Health risk assessment by consumption of vegetables grown with TSW indicated that all the vegetables were safe for human consumption. However, significant accumulation of these heavy metals in soil and plant needs to be monitored.     

Impact of intensive agricultural practices on drinking water quality in the EVROS Region (NE GREECE) by GIS analysis

Chemical fertilizers are used extensively in modern agriculture, in order to improve yield and productivity of agricultural products. However, nutrient leaching from agricultural soil into groundwater resources poses a major environmental and public health concern. The Evros region is one of the largest agricultural areas in Northern Greece, extending over 1.5 million acres of cultivated land. Many of its drinking water resources are of groundwater origin and lie within agricultural areas. In order to assess the impact of agricultural fertilizers on drinking water quality in this region, tap-water samples from 64 different locations were collected and analyzed for the presence of nitrates [Formula: see text], nitrites [Formula: see text], ammonium [Formula: see text], sulfate [Formula: see text] and phosphate [Formula: see text]. These chemicals were selected based on the information that ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate and inorganic phosphate were the primary fertilizers used in local crop production. [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] levels exceeding accepted values were recorded in 6.25, 4.70 and 9.38% of all sampling points, respectively. [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] concentrations, on the other hand, were inside the permitted range. The data generated were introduced into a geographic information system (GIS) program for computer analysis and projection maps representing afflicted areas were created. Our results indicate a profound geographic correlation in the surface distribution of primary contaminants in areas of intensified agricultural production. Thus, drinking water pollution in these areas can be attributed to excessive fertilizer use from agricultural sources.     

PESTICIDE OCCURRENCE IN GROUNDWATER IN TULARE COUNTY, CALIFORNIA

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and statistical methodswere used to identify the major factors affecting pesticideleaching in groundwater from agricultural fields in TulareCounty, California. Residues of bromacil, diuron, and simazineincreased in groundwater during the 1980s. Bromacil, diuron,and simazine contamination were positively correlated to cropdiversity and water demand. Diuron and simazine were positively correlated to groundwater depth and negatively correlatedto soil water-holding capacity. DBCP concentration in groundwater was related to the crop coverage. The Goss model wasused to examine soil-pesticide interactions and a PesticideContamination Index (PCI) was developed. Areas having highleaching potentials were mainly associated with citrus andorchards and coarse-textured sandy soils along the SierraNevada foothills, while areas having low leaching potentialswere associated with field crops and clay soils of the southwest region. The PCI was largest for DBCP during the 1980s,suggesting that it was the most significant contaminant before1977 when it was widely used; however, wells were not testedfor this pesticide during that period. Twelve years after DBCPwas banned, it was still the most significant health riskcontaminant. Spatial maps showing the distribution of leachingpotentials and soil interactions for these pesticides canprovide useful information to regulatory and planning agenciesfor land use planning and pesticide management.     

Pesticide monitoring in the Netherlands: can it be improved?

In the Netherlands, pesticide monitoring of the surface water is separately managed by different water authorities. These water authorities can decide when, where, and what pesticide will be monitored and at what frequency. To help make the decisions more reasonable and make the monitoring system more efficient and systematic, three new types of monitoring maps were developed. The maps are based on actual pesticide measurement from current monitoring system and crop data. Combined temporal and spatial distribution maps give an overview of the pesticide problem in the whole Netherlands. It can be used to develop a strategy in which season and where the pesticide should be intensively monitored. Temporal distribution map, together with the pesticide usage prediction map, provide information of individual pesticide. They help to find out when and at what frequency and which pesticide be monitored, based on which monitoring facilities can be applied more efficiently.     

The Spread of Pesticide Practices Among Cost-Efficient Farmers

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the spread of pesticide practices with respect to crop production (wheat, barley, and rapeseed) in French agriculture and to evaluate the potential pesticide reductions for cost-efficient farmers. This is made possible by conducting a double-step analysis based on non-parametric robust technology. First, from a panel data of 650 farms over a 12-year period located in the French department of Meuse, we selected the cost-efficient farms thanks to a robust free disposal hull (RFDH) technology. A second RFDH frontier analysis was run only on the selected cost-efficient farms thus enabling us to reveal the units which minimize the pesticide use per hectare while maintaining constant yields. Therefore, all the different total cost-efficient practices among farmers were evaluated in terms of pesticide per hectare and the minimum uses were selected. Our main conclusion is that the pesticide reductions per hectare for the cost-efficient farms could reach 24 %.     

农药厂周边有机磷农药在生物体中残留的检测方法研究

测定南京某农药厂附近大米、蔬菜及肉类中11种有机磷农药含量，通过使用气相色谱/质谱联用的方法，建立GC／MS定性定量分析方法，检出限达到0．05μg／kg（肉类）和0．1μg／kg（大米和蔬菜），回收率均符合测定要求。环境样品监测结果显示，大米和蔬菜中有机磷农药的含量高于肉类中的含量，说明在大米和蔬菜表面残留的农药量要高于进入生物体体内的含量。南京蔬菜样品中有机磷农药高于常州蔬菜样品，说明农药厂对蔬菜表面残留农药量有影响。不同的有机磷农药在不同的介质中，检出情况不一样，说明不同的环境介质对有机磷农药的保留水平不一样。     

Assessing the changes in land use and ecosystem services in an oasis agricultural region of Yanqi Basin,Northwest China

The Yanqi Basin, one of the most productive agricultural areas, has a high population density in Xinjiang, Northwest China. Land use changes, mainly driven by oasis expansion, significantly impact ecosystem services and functions, but these effects are difficult to quantify. The valuation of ecosystem services is important to clarify the ecological and environmental changes caused by agriculturalization of oasis. This study aimed to investigate variations in ecosystem services in response to land use changes during oasis agricultural expansion activities in the Yanqi Basin from 1964 to 2009. The methods used were based on formula of ecosystem service value (ESV) and ESV coefficients. Satellite data were combined with the ESV coefficients to quantify land use changes and ecosystem service changes in the study area. Sensitivity analysis determined the effect of manipulating the coefficients on the estimated values. The results show that the total ESVs in the Yanqi Basin were $1,674, $1,692, $1,471, $1,732, and $1,603 million in 1964, 1973, 1989, 1999, and 2009, respectively. The net deline in ESV was $71 million in the past 46 years, but the ESVs of each types of landscape changed significantly. The aggregated ESVs of water areas and wetlands were approximately 80 % of the total ESV. Water supply and waste treatment were the two largest service functions and contributed approximately 65 % of the total ESV. The estimated ESVs in this study were elastic with respect to the value coefficients. Therefore, the estimations were robust in spite of uncertainties on the value coefficients. These significant changes in land use occur within the entire basin over the study period. These changes cause environmental problems, such as land degradation, vegetation degeneracy, and changes in aquatic environment.     

杭州地区农业土壤中重金属的分布特征及其环境意义

为了分析杭州地区农业土壤重金属的分布特征及其环境意义,通过现场采样和室内分析检测的方法,对杭州市各区县不同作物农业土壤表层土中的Hg、As、Cu、Pb、Cr、Cd 6种重金属元素进行检测,并对其分布特征进行了分析。结果表明,杭州地区农业土壤中除As外,其他5种重金属的平均含量均低于且接近浙江省土壤背景值,个别采样点的重金属含量超过了土壤环境质量国家二级标准。总体上,杭州地区农业土壤处于安全水平。通过重金属的区域分布特征分析表明,余杭区和富阳市农业土壤中重金属平均含量普遍高于其他区域。萧山区和建德市部分农业土壤则存在Cu和Hg含量较高的情况,而淳安县农业土壤中重金属含量差异较大,土壤中出现了As、Cr和Cd含量最大值。不同作物的农业土壤重金属含量存在一定的差异,但不明显。水稻田和蔬菜地的土壤中,重金属含量较其他作物种植类型的土壤中含量高;叶菜类(蔬菜、茶叶)作物土壤中的Cd含量要比根茎类(水稻)、茄果类(水果)及其他作物种植类型的土壤中的含量低。目前杭州地区土壤中6种重金属含量均对作物的直接危害不大,但由于萧山区个别采样点Cu含量严重超标,淳安县土壤中Cd受外源性来源影响也已较明显,需要相关部门加大监管力度,防止污染事件发生。同时,为防止农业土壤中重金属含量进一步升高,需要加大大气降尘监测与治理、废气污染监管与控制治理。     

Risk assessment and loading capacity of reclaimed wastewater to be reused for agricultural irrigation

The reuse of treated municipal wastewater should be one of the new water resource target areas. The suitability of the reuse of wastewater for agricultural irrigation has to consider health risk, soil contamination and the influence of the reclaimed water on crop growth. In this work the aim is to use quantitative risk analysis to assess the health effects related to reclaimed water quality and to calculate the loading capacity of reclaimed wastewater in terms of the heavy metal accumulation. The results of chemical risk assessment show there would be slightly significant health risk and what risk there is can be limited within an acceptable level. The following exposure pathway: reclaimed water-->surface water-->fish (shellfish)-->human, and arsenic risks are of more concern. In terms of reuse impact in soil contamination, the most possible heavy metal caused accumulation is arsenic. The irrigative quantity has to reach 13,300 m(3)/ha to cause arsenic accumulation. However, only 12,000 m(3)/ha is essential for rice paddy cropland. The high total nitrogen of reclaimed water from secondary treatment makes it unfavorable for crop growth. The recommended dilution ratio is 50% during the growth period and 25% during the maturity period.     

我国农田农药流失现状及减控策略

农业面源污染已经成为全球水污染的主要来源,其中具有生物毒性的农药污染物对人体健康和生态环境安全构成了严重威胁。分析了我国农田农药流失现状,指出流失的主要农药品种与用药历史和特点密切相关,水体中检出的有机氯农药主要源于早期农药残留,检出的有机磷农药和长残效除草剂部分种类目前仍在使用。提出从影响农药流失的各个环节入手,制定严密的减控策略。植物缓冲带是拦截农药流失的常用措施,可以实现对农业面源污染的可持续治理。建议实行生态功能区划,严格限制高毒农药的施用,减少化学农药施用量,规范农药喷洒器械和施药技术,从源头上控制农药流失,从而降低农业非点源污染带来的危险。     

Organochlorine pesticide residues in drinking water in the rural areas of Haryana,India

Drinking water samples collected from rural areas of three districts of Haryana during pre-monsoon and post-monsoon periods were analysed for the presence of organochlorine pesticide residues. The main source of drinking water in rural areas, i.e. groundwater in Ambala and Gurgaon districts and surface water supply in Hisar district, was found to be contaminated with isomers of HCH and endosulfan and metabolites of DDT, whereas dieldrin remained below detection limits. During the study period, the mean values observed for total HCH, DDT and endosulfan were 87.6, 848.2, and 27.4 ng/L and 99.8, 275.3 and 164.2 ng/L, respectively, for Ambala and Gurgaon districts. In the case of Hisar district, the values were 78.5, 115.9, and 53.0 ng/L, respectively. During the study period, 37% of the samples exceeded the total pesticide level of 500 ng/L indicated in the EECD directive for drinking water. Seasonal variations of pesticide residues were also observed during the study period.     

An analytical model for the assessment of pesticide exposure levels in soils and groundwater

The movement and degradation of pesticide residues in soils and groundwater are complex processes affected by soil physical, (bio)chemical, and hydrogeological properties, climatic conditions, and agricultural practices. This work presents a physically-based analytical model suitable for long-term predictions of pesticide concentrations in groundwater. The primary interest is to investigate the impact of soil environment, related physical and (bio)chemical processes, especially, volatilization, crop uptake, and agricultural practices on long-term vulnerability of groundwater to contamination by pesticides. The soil is separated into root and intermediate vadose zones, each with uniform properties. Transport in each soil zone is modeled on the basis of complete mixing, by spatial averaging the related point multiphase-transport partial differential equation (i.e., linear-reservoir models). Transport in the aquifer, however, is modeled by a two-dimensional advection-dispersion transport equation, considering adsorption and first-order decay rate. Vaporization in the soil is accounted for by assuming liquid-vapor phase partitioning using Henry's law, and vapor flux (volatilization) from the soil surface is modeled by diffusion through an air boundary layer. Sorption of liquid-phase solutes by crops is described by a linear relationship which is valid for first-order (passive) crop uptake. The model is applied to five pesticides (atrazine, bromacil, chlordane, heptachlor, and lindane), and the potential for pesticide contamination of groundwater is investigated for sandy and clayey soils. Simulation results show that groundwater contamination can be substantially reduced for clayey soil environments, where bio(chemical) degradation and volatilization are most efficient as natural loss pathways for the pesticides. Also, uptake by cross can be a significant mechanism for attenuating exposure levels in ground-water especially in a sandy soil environment, and for relatively persisting pesticides. Further, simulations indicate that changing agricultural practices can have a profound effect on vulnerability of groundwater to mobile and relatively persisting pesticides.     

Monitoring of pesticide residues in market basket samples of vegetable from Lucknow City, India: QuEChERS method

The study was conducted on 20 vegetables including leafy, root, modified stem, and fruity vegetables like bitter gourd, jack fruit, french-bean, onion, colocassia, pointed gourd, capsicum, spinach, potato, fenugreek seeds, carrot, radish, cucumber, beetroot, brinjal, cauliflower, cabbage, tomato, okra, and bottle gourd. Forty-eight pesticides including 13 organochlorines (OCs), 17 organophosphates (OPs), 10 synthetic pyrethriods (SPs), and eight herbicides (H) pesticides were analyzed. A total number of 60 samples, each in triplicates, were analyzed using Quick, Easy, Cheap, Effective, Rugged, and Safe method. The quantification was done by GC-ECD/NPD. The recovery varies from 70.22% to 96.32% with relative standard deviation (RSD) of 15%. However the limit of detection ranged from 0.001?C0.009 mg kg^???1 for OCs, SPs, OPs, and H, respectively. Twenty-three pesticides were detected from total 48 analyzed pesticides in the samples with the range of 0.005?C12.35 mg kg^???1. The detected pesticides were: ??-HCH, Dicofol, ??-Endosulfan, Fenpropathrin, Permethrin-II, ??-cyfluthrin-II, Fenvalerate-I, Dichlorvos, Dimethoate, Diazinon, Malathion, Chlorofenvinfos, Anilophos, and Dimethachlor. In some vegetables like radish, cucumber, cauliflower, cabbage, and okra, the detected pesticides (??-HCH, Permethrin-II, Dichlorvos, and Chlorofenvinfos) were above maximum residues limit (MRL) (PFA 1954). However, in other vegetables the level of pesticide residues was either below detection limit or MRL.