Spatial and temporal distribution of pesticide residues in surface waters in northeastern Greece

Selecting analytical target pesticides in monitoring: Sensitivity analysis and scoring

Measuring river water concentrations of all pesticides applied in a catchment area is a daunting task. This study aims to develop new score tables for selecting analytical target pesticides. Sensitivity analyses were conducted using a diffuse pollution hydrologic model to quantitatively evaluate the influence of pesticide properties (e.g., log K(OC), degradability [half-life]) on concentrations of rice-farming pesticides in river water. Using the results of the analyses, score tables were systematically designed for the pesticide properties such that the sum of the scores for a particular pesticide, designated as the contamination index, was proportional to the expected/predicted concentration of that pesticide in river water. The contamination indexes for pesticides applied in three river basins were calculated and compared with the corresponding observed pesticide concentrations. Correlations between contamination indexes and observed concentrations were fairly good. Pesticides were ranked according to the quotients obtained by dividing the pesticide concentrations predicted from the contamination indexes by the corresponding drinking-water quality guideline values, and pesticide candidates to be monitored were successfully selected on the basis of a threshold quotient.

Influence of pine or oak wood on the degradation of alachlor and metalaxyl in soil

The objective of this work was to study the influence pine or oak wood added to soil as an amendment (5% w/w) had on the degradation rate of two pesticides, alachlor and metalaxyl, with different hydrophobic character. The formation of pesticide metabolites and the soil dehydrogenase activity in non-amended and amended soil samples were also monitored. The degradation of metalaxyl followed first-order kinetics, while the degradation of alachlor followed first-order or biphasic kinetics in the soil samples studied. The results indicated that the degradation rate was slower for metalaxyl than for alachlor, and for both pesticides followed the order: pine amended soil < oak amended soil < non-amended soil. The faster degradation rate in non-amended soil was attributed to the higher sorption of pesticides by wood amended soils. The alachlor ethane sulfonic acid (ESA), and two metalaxyl metabolites (2-[(2,6-dimethylphenyl)-methoxyacetylamino]-propionic acid and N-(2,6-dimethylphenyl)-2-methoxy-acetamide) were detected during the incubation period. Soil dehydrogenase activity recorded close values in non-amended and amended soil treated with alachlor, but it was higher in wood amended soil treated with metalaxyl. Pine and oak wood increase the immobilization of the pesticides studied, but they also limit their bioavailability in soil by decreasing their degradation rate in amended soil.

Organochlorine residues in blood of cinereous vultures and Eurasian griffon vultures in a northeastern Mediterranean area of nature conservation

In the National Park of Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli Forest (Dadia NP, Greece), seven "target" PCBs and 16 organochlorine pesticides (OCs) were analysed in blood samples of cinereous vultures (Aegypius monachus) and Eurasian griffon vultures (Gyps fulvus). PCB congeners 138, 153 and 180 predominated in both species' blood samples. In both species, no differences were detected in congener levels between successive age classes, but in cinereous vulture, there were significant differences between adult and nestling in levels of PCB 28, 52, 101, 118 and between nestling and immature in levels of PCB 101. Regarding pesticides, p,p'-DDE dominated in both vultures followed by β-HCH, lindane and endosulfan sulphate, but ∑OCs were higher in griffon vulture. Significant differences were detected only between nestling and sub-adult cinereous vultures in heptachlor levels and between nestling and adult in p,p'-DDT. The origin of pollutants differs between the two vulture species and pollution patterns may not reflect those at Dadia NP.

Evaluation of the risk of mixtures of paddy insecticides and their transformation products to aquatic organisms in the Sakura River, Japan

To assess the risk of mixtures of six paddy insecticides and their transformation products (TPs) to aquatic organisms in the Sakura River, Japan, their concentrations in the river water were monitored during the rice cultivation season in 2008 and 2009, and acute toxicity tests for Cheumatopsyche brevilineata (caddisflies) and Daphnia magna (daphnids), surrogate test species for caddisflies and cladocerans, respectively, were conducted. The mixture of fipronil, applied in the rice nursery box, and its desulfinyl, sulfide, and sulfone TPs were detected in the river for several months after transplanting, and they were more toxic to C. brevilineata than the other tested compounds. The toxicities of the parent compound and its TPs, such as fipronil and its TPs, may be related to their hydrophobicities. Risk quotients for mixtures (RQ(mix)) of only parent compounds did not exceed 1, but, in mid-June 2009, the RQ(mix) of parent compounds and TPs for caddisflies exceeded 1. Diazinon, fenitrothion, and fenthion sprayed on the rice crop and their TPs posed a sporadic risk for cladocerans, depending on the application timing, whereas fipronil TPs contributed to the RQ(mix) for caddisflies for several months after transplanting. The risk of mixtures of insecticides and their TPs differed seasonally between caddisflies and cladocerans, depending on insecticide application timing and the persistence and toxicity of TPs.

Simple determination of 40 organophosphate pesticides in raw wool using microwave-assisted extraction and GC-FPD analysis

A validated analytical method for the multiresidue analysis of 40 organophosphate pesticides (OPs) and conversion products in raw wool has been developed. The method is based on the selective microwave-assisted extraction (MAE) of raw wool with acetonitrile and analysis of extracts by gas chromatography-flame photometric detector. The optimum MAE conditions were 20 min duration at 80 °C with 30 mL of acetonitrile per gram of wool. A validation study was performed according to the European SANCO guidelines 10684/2009. Limits of detection and quantification for all pesticides tested were from 0.01 to 0.2 mg/kg and from 0.2 to 1.0 mg/kg, respectively. The average recoveries of pesticides spiked at different levels were in the range of 70-120% with relative standard deviations of ≤ 20%. The extraction performance was compared to the one obtained with a reference Soxhlet extraction. The method was also applied in the analysis of real wool (after field application) samples.

Determination and aquatic risk assessment of pesticide residues in riparian drainage canals in northeastern Greece

An approach combining monitoring and ecotoxicological data has been undertaken to assess pesticide loading in the drainage canals of two transboundary rivers of northeastern Greece near the Greek/Bulgarian/Turkish borders as well as the subsequent risk to non-target aquatic organisms. Aquatic risk assessment was based on the Risk Quotient (RQ=MEC/PNEC) regarding three trophic levels, algae, aquatic invertebrates and fish. Alachlor, atrazine, carbaryl, carbofuran, cypermethrin, DEA, DIA, diazinon, dimethoate, endosulfan, metolachlor, monilate, prometryn and trifluralin were the compounds detected at the highest concentrations on a regular basis. Extreme concentrations were observed just after high rainfall events during the month of pesticide application. Aquatic risk assessment revealed non-acceptable risk for 10 compounds when median concentrations were used as ΜEC values. However, should extreme concentrations be taken into account, 15 compounds were considered as likely to pose a threat to aquatic organisms. Conformity to EC environmental quality standards is also discussed.

Preparation of activated carbons from agricultural residues for pesticide adsorption

Activated carbons (ACs) can be used not only for liquid but also for vapour phase applications, such as water treatment, deodorisation, gas purification and air treatment. In the present study, activated carbons produced from agricultural residues (olive kernel, corn cobs, rapeseed stalks and soya stalks) via physical steam activation were tested for the removal of Bromopropylate (BP) from water. For the characterization of the activated carbons ICP, SEM, FTIR and XRD analyses were performed. Adsorption kinetics and equilibrium isotherms were investigated for all biomass activated carbons in aqueous solutions. Experimental data of BP adsorption have fitted best to the pseudo 2nd-order kinetic model and Langmuir isotherm. The study resulted that corn cobs showed better adsorption capacity than the other biomass ACs. Comparison among ACs from biomass and commercial ones (F400 and Norit GL50) revealed that the first can be equally effective for the removal of BP from water with the latter.

Assessing pesticide concentrations and fluxes in the stream of a small vineyard catchment--effect of sampling frequency

This study reports on the occurrence and behaviour of six pesticides and one metabolite in a small stream draining a vineyard catchment. Base flow and flood events were monitored in order to assess the variability of pesticide concentrations according to the season and to evaluate the role of sampling frequency on the evaluation of fluxes estimates. Results showed that dissolved pesticide concentrations displayed a strong temporal and spatial variability. A large mobilisation of pesticides was observed during floods, with total dissolved pesticide fluxes per event ranging from 5.7x10(-3) g/Ha to 0.34 g/Ha. These results highlight the major role of floods in the transport of pesticides in this small stream which contributed to more than 89% of the total load of diuron during August 2007. The evaluation of pesticide loads using different sampling strategies and method calculation, showed that grab sampling largely underestimated pesticide concentrations and fluxes transiting through the stream.

Behaviour of metalaxyl as copper oxychloride-metalaxyl commercial formulation vs. technical grade-metalaxyl in vineyards-devoted soils

The objective of this work is to asses the sorption of metalaxyl applied as a copper oxychloride (CO)-metalaxyl formulation, for a set of selected soils devoted to vineyards. The method involved batch incubation of soils suspended with a commercial copper oxychloride-metalaxyl-based fungicide in 0.01M CaCl(2). Afterwards, the metalaxyl concentration remaining in solution was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The amount of dissolved metalaxyl in the fungicide suspension depends mainly on the soil pH, its potential acidity, and the cation exchange capacity. Of the approx. 20% metalaxyl retained by the solid colloids, the effect of organic matter colloids in soils (15-20 mg kg(-1)) had a poor contribution (six times lower) than the copper oxychloride colloids (40%, w/w) in the commercial fungicide formulation (100-130 mg kg(-1)). When comparing these retention data with the behaviour of metalaxyl used as a technical grade fungicide of about 100% purity (10-15 mg kg(-1) in solids), it is clear that the commercial formulation increases a 30% retention of metalaxyl by soil (15-20 mg kg(-1) in solids). The overall effect of the metalaxyl formulation plus soil show values of 10 times higher retention than technical grade-metalaxyl plus soil. Commercial formulation can decrease the mobility of soluble metalaxyl in agricultural soils with regard to the expected values obtained from batch studies using analytical grade-metalaxyl. Therefore, the effect of surfactants should be considered in the assessment of water contamination by the pesticides used in agriculture.

Ecological risk assessment of cheese whey effluents along a medium-sized river in southwest Greece

An ecological risk assessment of cheese whey effluents was applied in three critical sampling sites located in Vouraikos river (southwest Greece), while ecological classification using Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EU criteria allowed a direct comparison of toxicological and ecological data. Two invertebrates (Daphnia magna and Thamnocephalus platyurus) and the zebra fish Danio rerio were used for toxicological analyses, while the aquatic risk was calculated on the basis of the risk quotient (RQ = PEC/PNEC). Chemical classification of sites was carried out using the Nutrient Classification System, while benthic invertebrates were collected and analyzed for biological classification. Toxicological results revealed the heavy pollution load of the two sites, nearest to the point pollution source, as the PEC/PNEC ratio exceeded 1.0, while unexpectedly, no risk was detected for the most downstream site, due to the consequent interference of the riparian flora. These toxicological results were in agreement with the ecological analysis: the ecological quality of the two heavily impacted sites ranged from moderate to bad, whereas it was found good for the most downstream site. The results of the study indicate major ecological risk for almost 15 km downstream of the point pollution source and the potentiality of the water quality remediation by the riparian vegetation, proving the significance of its maintenance.