An Excel-based Index (PestEX) For
Environmental Mobility Of Pesticides In Relation
To Water Resources
Author(s)
N. Z. Jovanovic & C. Petersen
Abstract
Agriculture is one of the main sources of non-point source (NPS) pollution in
South Africa. Research was therefore initiated on the development of an
integrated modelling framework for prediction of agricultural NPS pollution
from field to catchment scale. In that context, an Excel-based Pesticide
Environmental indeX (PestEX) was developed that accounts for the main factors
affecting mobility of pesticides and their potential for landing up in a water
resource. A tiered approach was used to combine these factors based on their
level of occurrence, namely local scale (pesticide drift; position of application in
relation to streams and groundwater; general slope of the area; presence of
impervious layers in soils and dominant flow direction; tillage practices; soil
hydraulic properties; the impact of irrigation practices/rainfall distribution via
overland flow and deep percolation; the presence of anti-erosion contours),
catchment scale (pesticide properties like sorption, volatilization and decay; the
presence of wetlands/buffer strips) and overarching level (pesticide application;
sensitivity of the receiving environment). Each of these factors is assigned a
rating (using fuzzy logic for numerical variables) and weighting to produce a
pesticide mobility score. The normalized score allows comparison and
minimization of environmental and pollution abatement costs. The PestEX
calculator was demonstrated using data from an experimental site in the Western
Cape (South Africa), where methomyl and tebuconazole were applied to dryland
wheat, and their mobility to water bodies was scored. Potential users of this tool
are the scientific community, farmers, pesticide consultants and the regulatory
authority. Possible applications are in comparative analyses of environmental
and pollution abatement costs of different chemicals for regulatory or marketing
purposes, sensitivity analyses to assess the effects of different mitigation/
Keywords
environmental cost, environmental mobility, fuzzy logic, index, mitigation measures, non-point source pollution, pesticides, pollution abatement cost, water resources
Related Book
Other papers in this volume
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