Pesticide Mixtures in Surface Waters of Two Protected Areas in Southwestern Germany.

Pesticides enter non-target surface waters as a result of agricultural activities and may reach water bodies in protected areas. We measured in southwestern Germany pesticide concentrations after heavy rainfalls in streams of a drinking water protection area near Hausen (Freiburg) and in the catchment of the Queich (Landau), which originates from the biosphere reserve Palatinate Forest. On average, 32 (n = 21) and 21 (n = 10) pesticides were detected per sample and event in the area of Hausen (n = 56) and in the Queich catchment (n = 17), respectively.

Neonicotinoid insecticides in global agricultural surface waters - Exposure, risks and regulatory challenges.

Neonicotinoids are the most widely used insecticides worldwide. However, the widespread usage of neonicotinoids has sparked concerns over their effects on non-target ecosystems including surface waters. We present here a comprehensive meta-analysis of 173 peer-reviewed studies (1998-2022) reporting measured insecticide concentrations (MICs; n = 3983) for neonicotinoids in global surface waters resulting from agricultural nonpoint source pollution.

Trends of Total Applied Pesticide Toxicity in German Agriculture.

Expressing temporal changes in the use of pesticides, based not only on amounts (masses) but also on their toxicity for different species groups, was proposed as a sensible approach for evaluating potential environmental risks. Here, we calculated the total applied toxicity (TAT) between 1995 and 2019 for Germany, mapped it, and compared it to the US TAT and other risk indicators. Results show that the German TAT for terrestrial vertebrates decreased over time by about 20%.

Pesticide occurrence in protected surface waters in nature conservation areas of Germany.

A complete ban on pesticide use in sensitive areas, such as nature conservation areas (NCA), is currently being debated in the EU as part of the Sustainable Use Regulation. NCA are strictly protected landscapes in Germany with minimal agricultural activity (<4.5 %) that serve as vital ecological refuges.

Applied pesticide toxicity shifts toward plants and invertebrates, even in GM crops.

Pesticide impacts are usually discussed in the context of applied amounts while disregarding the large but environmentally relevant variations in substance-specific toxicity. Here, we systemically interpret changes in the use of 381 pesticides over 25 years by considering 1591 substance-specific acute toxicity threshold values for eight nontarget species groups. We find that the toxicity of applied insecticides to aquatic invertebrates and pollinators has increased considerably-in sharp contrast to the applied amount-and that this increase has been driven by highly toxic pyrethroids and neonicotinoids, respectively.

Water quality and ecological risks in European surface waters - Monitoring improves while water quality decreases.

Aquatic ecosystems are at risk of being impaired by various organic chemicals, however comprehensive large-scale evaluations of waterbodies' status and trends are rare. Here, surface water monitoring data, gathered as part of the EU Water Framework Directive and comprising the occurrence of 352 organic contaminants (>8.3 mil.

Aquatic pesticide exposure in the U.S. as a result of non-agricultural uses.

Non-agricultural uses of pesticides are common in the U.S. and may thus lead to exposure of non-target ecosystems such as urban waterways.

Insecticide Risk in US Surface Waters: Drivers and Spatiotemporal Modeling.

Although pesticide contamination in agricultural surface waters is a common phenomenon, large-scale studies dealing with the responsible drivers are rare. We used data from 259 publications reporting 5830 individual water or sediment concentrations of 32 insecticides and their metabolites in 644 US surface waters to determine the factors driving insecticide risks, that is, exceedance of regulatory threshold levels (RTLs). Multiple linear regressions ( adj.

Meta-Analysis of Insecticides in United States Surface Waters: Status and Future Implications.

Agricultural insecticides occur in U.S. surface waters, yet our knowledge of their current and potential future large-scale risks for biodiversity is restricted.

Long-term effects of fungicides on leaf-associated microorganisms and shredder populations-an artificial stream study.

Leaf litter is a major source of carbon and energy for stream food webs, while both leaf-decomposing microorganisms and macroinvertebrate leaf shredders can be affected by fungicides. Despite the potential for season-long fungicide exposure for these organisms, however, such chronic exposures have not yet been considered. Using an artificial stream facility, effects of a chronic (lasting up to 8 wk) exposure to a mixture of 5 fungicides (sum concentration 20 μg/L) on leaf-associated microorganisms and the key leaf shredder Gammarus fossarum were therefore assessed.