IAEA-TECDOC-1248 Impact of long term pesticide usage on soil properties using radiotracer techniques Proceedings of a Final Research Coordination meeting organized by the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture and held in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China, 24–28 May 1999 November 2001 The originating Section of this publication in the IAEA was: Food and Environmental Protection Section International Atomic Energy Agency Wagramer Strasse 5 P.O. Box 100 A-1400 Vienna, Austria IMPACT OF LONG TERM PESTICIDE USAGE ON SOIL PROPERTIES USING RADIOTRACER TECHNIQUES IAEA, VIENNA, 2001 IAEA-TECDOC-1248 ISSN 1011–4289 © IAEA, 2001 Printed by the IAEA in Austria November 2001 FOREWORD An important activity of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is to assist Member States to ensure that, as far as possible, pesticides are used effectively and safely. To this end, FAO has published Guidelines for the Registration and Control of Pesticides, which forms the basis of most national pesticide registration schemes. Among the recommendations is that data should be provided to show that a candidate pesticide has no unacceptable effects on non-target organisms. Soil micro-flora and fauna, because of their central role in maintaining soil fertility, are highly ranked in this context. Concern has been expressed that the data normally presented may not be adequate to predict the effects on soil micro-organisms of repeated, heavy, multiple applications of pesticides that are common in monocultures of crops, such as cotton, maize and rice. Evaluation of the effects of such pesticide regimes requires studies of a range of soil microbial activities, some of which require the use of 14C-labelled pesticides. Therefore, the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture organised a Co-ordinated Research project to assess whether or not there is a need to extend the data requirements for pesticide registration to cover such extreme agricultural practices. This TECDOC summarises the outcome of this programme and includes papers presented at the final Research Co-ordination meeting held in Hangzhou, China, 24–28 May 1999. The IAEA officers responsible for this publication were R.J. Hance, M. Hussain and I.G. Ferris of the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture. EDITORIAL NOTE This publication has been prepared from the original material as submitted by the authors. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the IAEA, the governments of the nominating Member States or the nominating organizations. The use of particular designations of countries or territories does not imply any judgement by the publisher, the IAEA, as to the legal status of such countries or territories, of their authorities and institutions or of the delimitation of their boundaries. The mention of names of specific companies or products (whether or not indicated as registered) does not imply any intention to infringe proprietary rights, nor should it be construed as an endorsement or recommendation on the part of the IAEA. The authors are responsible for having obtained the necessary permission for the IAEA to reproduce, translate or use material from sources already protected by copyrights. CONTENTS Summary...........................................................................................................................................1 Impact of long term applications of cotton pesticides on soil biological properties, dissipation of [14C]-methyl parathion and persistence of multi-pesticide residues ............15 M.M. Andrea, T.B. Peres, L.C. Luchini, M.A. Marcondes, A. Pettinelli Jr, L.E.Nakagawa Impact of repeated long term application of atrazine on soil properties and bound residues formation ...................................................................................................37 R. Behki, S.U. Khan Impact of repeated insecticide application on soil microbial activity.......................................43 Bujin Xu, Yongxi Zhang, Meici Chen, Nanwen Zhu, Hong Ming A study of the fate of methamidophos in soil...........................................................................51 Bujin Xu, Huang Xiaohua, Yongxi Zhang Mineralization of 14C-labelled agrochemicals in soil ...............................................................57 Bujin Xu, Huang Xiaohua, Hu Xiuqing, Yongxi Zhang Effect of repeated applications of pesticides used on cotton on soil properties .......................63 S.M.A.D. Zayed, M. Farghaly, S.M. Soliman, H. Taha Impact of repeated pesticide applications on the binding and release of methyl 14C-monocrotophos and ring labelled 14C-carbaryl to soil matrices under field conditions....................................................................................75 S.M.A.D.Zayed, M. Farghaly ,S.M. Soliman, H. Taha Mineralization of 14C-labelled aromatic pesticide molecules in Egyptian soils under aerobic and anaerobic conditions......................................................83 S.M.A.D. Zayed, M. Farghaly, F. Mahdy, S. El-Maghraby, H. Taha, S.M. Soliman Long term fate and effects of the herbicide bromoxynil in soil cropped with maize ...............89 I. Scheunert, A. Gunthner, P. Rosenbrock Effect of repeated pesticide applications on soil properties in cotton fields: I. Impact on microbes, iron reduction capacity and respiration..............................................................99 K. Vig, D.K. Singh, H.C. Agarwal, A.K. Dhawan, P. Dureja Effect of repeated pesticide applications on soil properties in cotton fields: II. Insecticide residues and impact on dehydrogenase and arginine deaminase activities ......................119 K. Vig, D.K. Singh, H.C. Agarwal, A.K. Dhawan, P. Dureja Mineralization and volatilization of ring labelled 14C-2,4-D in three different soils..............129 M. Shrivastwa, D.K. Singh, T. Jindal, H.C. Agarwal Dissipation and leaching of 14C-monocrotophos in soil columns...........................................135 K. Vig, D.K. Singh, H.C. Agarwal Impact of heavy repeated long term pesticide applications on soil properties in a cotton agroecosystem.........................................................................141 Altaf Hussain, Muhammad Rafique Asi, Zafar Iqbal, Jamil Anwar Chaudhry Mineralization and volatilization of 14C-ring labelled 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid in Pakistani soils ...................................................................................................................157 Altaf Hussain, Zafar Iqbal, Muhammad Rafique Asi, Jamil Anwar Chaudhry Impact of repeated pesticide applications on the binding and release of 14C-methamidohpos to soil matrices under field conditions.............................................161 Altaf Hussain, Zafar Iqbal, Muhammad Rafique Asi, Jamil Anwar Chaudhry Impact of continued use of profenofos on soil as a consequence of cotton crop protection.......................................................................................................165 A.W. Tejada, R.G. Bayot, B.B. Quintana, L.M. Austria, S.C. Bobiles, A.G.R. Villanueva Impact of long - term pesticide usage on soil microbial activities and 14C – monocrotophos degradation ....................................................................................173 N. Tayaputch, P. Pimpan, Y. Phaikaew, L. Chukiatwatana APPENDIX: EXPERIMENTAL PROTOCOLS....................................................................181 List of Participants ........................................................................................................................189 SUMMARY OF THE CO-ORDINATED RESEARCH PROGRAMME 1. Introduction Crop losses to pests, pathogens and weed competition exceeded 40% worldwide in 1989–90 [1], ranging from 28% in Europe to almost 49% in Africa. In financial terms this is of the order of $250 billion. To try to contain these losses, farmers and growers use chemical pesticides. Although pesticides are credited with success in increasing food production and helping to protect man and animals against disease vectors, there are concerns that they have the potential to harm human and environmental health and even compromise the sustainability of agricultural systems. Part of a pesticide application usually reaches the soil, even if sprayed on the growing crop, and so may have an effect on organisms living in the soil. Therefore, it is important to study the possible effects of specific practices on soil properties. Such possibilities are of particular concern where pesticides are applied at high rates, repeatedly, over many years, as occurs in crops such as maize and cotton which often receive multiple applications of several pesticides during a single growing season. Soil is a dynamic living system with a variety of micro-and macro-flora and fauna including bacteria, actinomycetes, fungi, nematodes, arthropods, crustaceans and earthworms. They play a primary role in the degradation of plant and animal residues and other organic matter in the environment as well as in nitrogen fixation, nitrification and the release of nutrients from soil minerals [2]. Anything that affects their activities might affect the function of soils not only in crop production, but also in the global carbon and nitrogen cycles and in the removal of a range of environmental pollutants. The consequences could thus be serious. Hence the FAO Guidelines for the Registration and Control of Pesticides [3], which are followed by national registration schemes, require studies