Pesticides reaching the environment as a consequence of inappropriate agricultural practices in Argentina

ANDRES ARIAS; NATALIA BUZZI; MARCELO PEREYRA; JORGE MARCOVECCHIO

Pesticides: Formulations, Effects and Fate

Intech Ed.Publ

Lugar: Viena; Año: 2011; p. 313 - 332

Pest management is one of the main scopes of pesticides usage, because more than 45% of annual food production is lost due to pest infestation. In particular, at tropical climates this is enhanced due to prevailing high temperature and humidity. However, the sporadic use has been leading to significant consequences not only to public health but also to food quality resulting in an impact load on the environment and hence the development of pest resistance. To sum up, the existing evidence arguments in favour of revising and restructuring the national agriculture policy and monitoring programs. As a first step, this chapter will discuss some elements of the Argentinean agricultural practices and policies, and then it will focus in reviewing pesticides’ occurrence in the environment.