Impacts of atrazine in aquatic ecosystems

A portion of all herbicides applied to forests, croplands, road sides, and gardens are inevitably lost to water bodies either directly through runoff or indirectly by leaching through groundwater into ephemeral streams and lakes. Once in the aquatic environment, herbicides may cause stress within aquatic communities and radically alter community structure. Atrazine is one of the most effective and inexpensive herbicides in the world and is consequently used more frequently than any other herbicide. Atrazine is frequently detected in aquatic waters, and has been known to affect reproduction of aquatic flora and fauna, which in turn impacts on the community structure as a whole. This paper presents a summary of the reported direct and indirect impacts of atrazine on aquatic organisms and community structure. The information can be used for developing improved management guidelines and legislation. It is concluded that a single universal maximum limit on the atrazine application in catchments, as suggested by many regulatory authorities, does not provide adequate protection of the aquatic environment. Rather, it is advocated that flexible limits on the application of atrazine be developed in line with the potential risk of contamination to surface and subsurface water and fragility of the aquatic environment.     

降雨径流时农田沟渠水体中氮、磷迁移转化规律研究

为有效阻控降雨条件下农田土壤流失氮、磷通过沟渠进入水体,通过对降雨时农田排水沟渠系统中总氮、总磷的测定和分析,研究降雨径流下沟渠系统水体中氮、磷的迁移转化规律和时空分布.结果表明,农田排水沟渠系统本身不太稳定,在外界条件(降雨)的作用下可以引起一系列的变化,同时农田排水沟渠系统又具有抗冲击可修复能力,可以使氮、磷的各项转化作用恢复.该特征使得总氮、总磷在沿程迁移过程中表现出一定的变化规律:总氮浓度沿程呈3次多项式曲线变化,总磷浓度整体呈指数递减变化;同时各断面的总氮、总磷自身转化也有其降解规律,总氮和总磷浓度随时间均呈3次多项式曲线变化.     

Biodegradation of Agricultural Plastic Films: A Critical Review

The growing use of plastics in agriculture has enabled farmers to increase their crop production. One major drawback of most polymers used in agriculture is the problem with their disposal, following their useful life-time. Non-degradable polymers, being resistive to degradation (depending on the polymer, additives, conditions etc) tend to accumulate as plastic waste, creating a serious problem of plastic waste management. In cases such plastic waste ends-up in landfills or it is buried in soil, questions are raised about their possible effects on the environment, whether they biodegrade at all, and if they do, what is the rate of (bio?)degradation and what effect the products of (bio?)degradation have on the environment, including the effects of the additives used. Possible degradation of agricultural plastic waste should not result in contamination of the soil and pollution of the environment (including aesthetic pollution or problems with the agricultural products safety). Ideally, a degradable polymer should be fully biodegradable leaving no harmful substances in the environment. Most experts and acceptable standards define a fully biodegradable polymer as a polymer that is completely converted by microorganisms to carbon dioxide, water, mineral and biomass, with no negative environmental impact or ecotoxicity. However, part of the ongoing debate concerns the question of what is an acceptable period of time for the biodegradation to occur and how this is measured. Many polymers that are claimed to be ‘biodegradable’ are in fact ‘bioerodable’, ‘hydrobiodegradable’, ‘photodegradable’, controlled degradable or just partially biodegradable. This review paper attempts to delineate the definition of degradability of polymers used in agriculture. Emphasis is placed on the controversial issues regarding biodegradability of some of these polymers.