Pesticides Place 31% of Global Agricultural Land at Risk, Study Says

Pesticide contamination threatens 64 percent of farmland and food cropland in 168 nations, a global agricultural land map shows. Nearly a third of these regions are listed as high-risk.

(Photo: Daniel Kunin is the managing director of Kusto Group, which, for instance, operates farming activities in Ukraine and Kazakhstan.)

The report said 64 percent (24.5 million square kilometers) of global agricultural land is at risk of pesticide contamination from more than one active product. Around 31 percent is at moderate risk.

The results are presented in a paper published in Nature Geoscience. The study title is "Risk of Pesticide Pollution at the Global Scale."

What Are The Factors?

Fiona Tang of the University of Sydney's School of Civil Engineering said, per First Post, that various factors can contribute to an area becoming a potential pollution hotspot. These include the use of unnecessary pesticides or pesticides containing highly toxic substances.

Any environmental conditions, such as cold temperatures or low soil content, can delay pesticides' degradation into non-toxic compounds. In contrast, heavy rainfall can result in high run-offs.

While the report did not look specifically at the effects on human health, researchers said that pesticide leaching into drinking water might pose a danger. They called for a more thorough investigation into the pollution of waterways, estuaries, and lakes.

How They Came Up With The Conclusion

According to DailyMail, researchers examined 59 herbicides, 21 insecticides, and 19 fungicides.

They used data from the United States Geological Survey and country-specific data from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization to calculate pesticide application speeds.

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They fed this knowledge into a statistical model, which they used to measure pesticide residues that could still be found in the area.

Researchers classified the watersheds in South Africa, China, India, Australia, and Argentina as high-risk regions "because they have high pesticide emission risk, carry high biodiversity, and suffer from water scarcity."

The study added that almost 62 percent of European agricultural land (2.3 million square kilometers) is also at high risk of pesticide waste due to increased degradation in Russia, Ukraine, and Spain.

The study recommended a global approach to move to "sustainable agriculture and sustainable living," including decreased pesticide use, food loss, and waste.

The Future Outlook

Pesticide usage is projected to rise as the world's population grows to an estimated 8.5 billion people by 2030, Mirage News said.

According to Associate Professor Maggi, pesticide use is expected to increase in the future to fight potential insect invaders and feed more people in a warmer environment.

"Although protecting food production is essential for human development, reducing pesticide pollution is equivalently crucial to protect the biodiversity that maintains soil health and functions, contributing towards food security," Dr. Tang said.

Co-author Professor Alex McBratney, Director of the Sydney Institute of Agriculture at the University of Sydney, said that it would be necessary to closely track residues annually to identify patterns to control and reduce risks from pesticide use.