Exposure Assessment to Hazardous Pesticides - Strategies to Reduce Human and Environmental Risks

Abstract

In a generic way, obsolete pesticides can be defined as those that can no longer be used for their intended purpose or any other purpose and thus need to be disposed. Almost every developing country and economy in transition has stocks of obsolete pesticides. Due to many factors, obsolete pesticides have been stored under conditions that do not meet safe and responsible requirements, posing a significant risk of leaking. The assessment of the storage and containment conditions for obsolete pesticides implies a site-by-site evaluation in order to detect these eventual leakages. Leaked pesticides will be dispersed in the environment by wind, evaporation, spillage into water, surface runoff or leaching through the soil. The exposure effects to humans and animals will be similar to non-obsolete pesticides, although the chemical composition is different from the original product. Strategies to reduce human and environmental exposure require more that an isolated exposure assessment and it is not possible to standardize "how to eliminate pesticides obsolete stockpiles", as a site by site approach is needed. Regardless of the local legislation, environmental condition and diversity in the techniques that may be applicable for particular sites at different countries, there are four basic steps that should work as a start to the obsolete pesticides safe containment and removal process. An inventory is required as first, followed by a risk characterization, site stabilization and finally the disposal. This work will focus in particular on the methodology for the inventory and for the risk characterization such as the site stabilization and disposal steps for all obsolete pesticides stockpiles rely on these two key activities. © Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2013.