Fate and behavior of pesticides and their effect on soil biological properties under climate change scenario

Abstract

Global climate change has imparted inevitable footprints on the environment associated with extreme temperature and rainfall event along with rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration which may notably alter the use, distribution, and degradation patterns of pollutants like pesticides. Environmental fate and behavior of pesticides are controlled by weather parameters like rainfall, temperature, and wind extreme. Climatic events have definite role in controlling the fate of pesticides. Scare information is available in consolidated manner addressing the issues of impacts of climate change on pesticides fate which we have in sighted in this chapter. In this chapter, the main research findings in this field are summarized, and the effects of climate changes on fate, behavior, and transport of pesticides are reviewed. This chapter also summarizes the primary pesticide fate models and their application to assess the impact of climate change. In additionally, research gaps and future research directions are identified and suggested. Under the influence of climate change, global cycling of pesticides has also been discussed which shows that degradation pathway of pesticides is changing with changes in temperature. Due to changes in frequency of freezing and thawing, equilibrium between sorbed and nonsorbed pesticides will be affected and thereby change the degradation, leaching and runoff. Occurrence of frequent heavy rainfall events leads to more runoff and leaching of pesticides and consequent contamination in groundwater and surface water. Due to extreme weather condition, crops are more vulnerable to pest and diseases and frequency and amount of pesticide used is also increased. Though increased temperature or salinity will enhance the degradation of pesticides, production of more toxic metabolites toward aquatic organism is of concern. Understanding of the possible impacts of extreme climatic events on pesticides contaminated soil and possible remediation technologies have also been discussed. Futures research should also be focused on climate changeinduced pesticide pollution on air and consequents effect on human health. Moreover, understanding the impacts of climate change on fate and behavior of pesticides is a complex process, and therefore interdisciplinary scientific study on global scale in a long-term basis is the need of the hour.