Biofilters to treat the pesticides wastes from spraying applications: results after 4 years of study.

Biofilters were developed in order to eliminate or reduce the quantity of pesticides from rinsing and cleaning waters of sprayers. Biofilters consist in 1, 2 or 3 plastic containers of 1 m3 placed in a vertical pile and containing a substrate elaborated from a homogenised mixture of local soil, chopped straw and compost able to absorb and degrade the pesticides. Biofilters are installed near the area for cleaning and rinsing the sprayer and the waste waters are pumped into the system. Since 2002, a pilot study is carried out in Belgium in order to evaluate the efficacy of these systems. Twenty pilot systems were installed since 2002 until 2004 in several farms, agricultural technical centres or schools and in a municipal maintenance service. The efficacy of the biofilters was studied for several chemical classes of herbicides (sulfonylurea, aryloxyalcanoic acids, chloroacetanilides), insecticides (pyrethroids, carbamates) and fungicides (dicarboximides, phenylamides, triazoles and strobilurines). The balance of the inputs and the outputs of the pesticides was determined by monitoring the elutes. The degradation kinetic of pesticides into the substrate was evaluated by analysing the pesticides into the substrate. The microbiological activity of the substrate was also evaluated by measuring respiration and some indirect parameters like dry matter content, Kjeldahl nitrogen content, organic carbon content and biological oxygen demand (BOD). Results obtained until now after four years of experiments have showed an overall good efficacy (retention) of pesticides by the biofilter and a high degradation rate for the majority of pesticides. Biofilters permit to reduce highly the quantity of pesticides from rinsing and cleaning waters of sprayers and contribute significantly to the reduction of the contamination of surface water. Biofilters are now registered by the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment of the Walloon Region in Belgium and are recommended to pesticides users.