Since the fifties, organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) had been used in agriculture to protect vegetables. Two decades after their ban by the Stockholm convention in 2001, OCPs are still present in agricultural soils inducing vegetable contamination with concentrations above Maximum Residue Level (MRL). This is a major concern for a 5 km² peri-urban vegetable growing valley located in the south west of France. In the present work, the sampling method was developed to clarify the spatial distribution of one OCP, Dieldrin, and its relationship with soil properties at the scale of study area. A total of 99 soil samples was collected for physicochemical analyses and Dieldrin concentrations. Results show Dieldrin concentrations in soils up to 204 μg kg⁻¹. The horizontal distribution of this pesticide is heterogeneous at the study area scale but homogeneous in each reference plot studied. About 85% of the contamination was located in the top soil layers (0–40 cm depth), but Dieldrin may still be quantified at a depth of 80 cm. Among all soil physicochemical parameters analysed, SOM was the most significantly related (P < 10⁻⁴) with Dieldrin concentrations, once different grain size fractions were considered. Moreover, results indicate a 33 times higher Dieldrin concentration and/or extractability for coarse sand than for other grain size fractions. These results show that the developed sampling method is adapted for the study area scale as it helps understanding the factors influencing the spatial distribution of Dieldrin. Historical amendments are the predominant factor for the horizontal contamination and deep ploughing for the vertical contamination. Also, the variations of coarse sand repartition in soils prevents identification of relationships between SOM and Dieldrin contamination in bulk soil. Further investigation is required to explain these relationships but these results highlight why no clear relationship between OCPs and SOM was previously identified.

Agricultural development is inevitable to meet the growing need for food. But along with this development, there are unintended and undesirable consequences for human life and the environment that need, found a solution and corrected. One of the most important adverse consequences of agricultural development is the pollution of surface and groundwater resources, which results from various factors such as soil erosion and improper use of different pesticides. This study aimed to conduct an environmental monitoring program in Naseri wetland to determine the concentrations of organophosphorus pesticides (OPPₛ) in water samples and also to evaluate the potential risks (ecological and health risk assessment) of these pesticides. The salting-out assisted liquid-liquid extraction method was used to extract pesticides. The residual concentrations of OPPₛ evaluated by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). In this study, the ecological risk of OPPₛ calculated for wetland ecosystem, based on the acute risk quotient (RQᵢ) formula with maximum (RQₘₐₓ), mean (RQₘₑₐₙ), and mixture (RQₘᵢₓ) concentrations of organophosphorus pesticides in the wetland water. Also, to assess the health risk of consuming contaminated fish with organophosphate pesticides, the potential non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risks were determined by the hazard quotient (Index) (HQ, HI) and incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) indices, respectively. The mean ± SD concentration of OPPₛ (Chlorpyrifos, Malathion, Ethion, Dichlorvos, Trifluralin and Diazinon) in samples of wetland water ranged from 0.14 ± 0.08 to 0.35 ± 0.12 and 0.054 ± 0.06 to 0.2 ± 0.1 (μg/L) in summer and autumn, respectively. The mean ± SD of OPPₛ in fish varied from 0.68 ± 0.86 to 3.94 ± 2.7 (μg/kg). Overall, the concentrations of pesticides in all water and fish samples were below the maximum residue limit (30 μg/kg) during the study period, according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the World Health Organization (WHO). The results of acute risk quotient were in summer (RQₘₐₓ = 3.49E-4 to 0.067, RQₘₑₐₙ = 5.8E-5 to 0.029, RQₘᵢₓ = 0.139-0.026, 0.018-3.42E-3) and autumn (RQₘₐₓ = 8E-4 to 0.051, RQₘₑₐₙ = 7.74E-6 to 0.018 RQₘᵢₓ = 0.1–0.013, 6E-3- 1.5E-3). The non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic risk indexes due to fish consumption for adults and children were (HQ = 0.026-4.68E-4, HI = 0.041, ILCR = 1.7E-7) and (HQ = 1.85E-3-1.3E-5, HI = 0.041, ILCR = 5.55E-8), respectively. The risk of OPPₛ was generally low. But cumulative risk (pesticide mixtures), should not be ignored.

Pistachio is an economically valuable crop, and Iran is among the biggest producers, exporters, and consumers of this product in the world. During the growing season, pistachios are subjected to multiple sprayings with various pesticides, which result in the accumulation of their residues in nuts. These residues have raised concerns regarding consumers’ health. In this research, uptake and dissipation kinetics of insecticides imidacloprid (IMI), thiacloprid (THI), thiamethoxam (THX), and abamectin (ABA) were investigated in pistachio nuts. Field experiments were conducted in a pistachio orchard. Pistachio trees were sprayed with the recommended dose of each insecticide formulation and water as the control. Samplings were performed for up to 49 days. Based on the results, pesticides uptake and dissipation kinetics were best fitted to first-order exponential growth (FOEG) and single first-order kinetic (SFOK) models, respectively. Variations in pesticides uptake/dissipation rates were mostly related to their water solubility, pKₐ, and log Kₒw. THX showed a higher uptake rate (0.16 ± 0.04) compared to IMI (0.10 ± 0.01) and THI (0.06 ± 0.01). The fastest dissipation rates were observed for IMI (0.04 ± 0.002 day⁻¹) and THX (0.03 ± 0.001 day⁻¹), while the slowest belonged to THI (0.02 ± 0.003 day⁻¹). ABA residues were below the quantification limit (LOQ) throughout the experiment. Based on FOEG and SFOK model predictions, multiple sprayings with THI and THX resulted in final concentrations exceeding the maximum residue limit (MRL). Hazard quotients for all pesticides were <1, indicating no risk to humans via consumption of the pistachio nut.

This study was conducted to investigate the pesticide residue concentrations and assess potential human health risks from vegetable consumption in Incheon. A total of 960 samples were collected from the Incheon areas of Korea in 2019. The pesticide residues were analyzed by the multi-residue method of the Korean Food Code for 373 different pesticides using GC–MS/MS, LC–MS/MS, GC-ECD/NPD, and HPLC-UVD. Among the vegetable samples, 869 samples (90.5%) were free from detectable residues, while 91 samples (9.5%) contained residues, and 16 samples (1.7%) had residues exceeding the Korean maximum residue limit (MRLs). A total of 33 different pesticide residues were found, and 11 residues exceeded MRLs. The most frequently detected pesticide residues were chlorfenapyr, fludioxonil, pyridalyl, hexaconazole, and procymidone. Samples exceeding the MRLs were found in aster scaber, coastal hog fennel, lettuce (leaves), mustard green, mustard leaf, perilla leaves, Pimpinella brachycarpa, radish leaves, shepherd’ purse, spinach, and winter-grown cabbage. The potential health risk assessment of pesticides was estimated by calculating the estimated daily intake (EDI) and the acceptable daily intake (ADI). The range of HQs was 0.002–90.621%, which was below 100%. Therefore, the results of this study show that the detected pesticide could not be considered a serious public health problem through the consumption of vegetables.

In this study, 30 pesticide residues in 45 fresh-eating cucumber, tomato, and okra fruit samples collected from the Khuzestan province as the main agricultural products in Iran using the QuEChERS extraction method were analyzed. In addition, noncarcinogen and carcinogen health risk assessments were evaluated. Results indicated that 93% of cucumber samples had at least one pesticide, of course, less than the maximum residue limit (MRL). All tomato and okra fruit samples were contaminated by diazinon. All pesticides detected in tomato samples were below national MRL except for thiamethoxam in four samples. In okra fruit samples, all detected diazinon and malathion, but only tebuconazole fungicide exceeded MRL. In addition, the hazard index (HI) was 0.23 and 1.06 in cucumber samples, 0.33 and 1.51 in tomato samples, and 5.5E-03 and 0.025 in okra fruit samples in adults and children, respectively. The use of cucumber and tomato may have notable risks in the short term in children group age. Ranking based on total CR was 1.2E-05 in tomato, 7.7E-06 for cucumber, and in okra 9.1E-11 because of the difenoconazole residue. However, significant carcinogenic risk threatens cucumber and tomato consumers.

Residue field trials in cucumber were conducted for the safe use of a commercial formulation of cyproconazole·azoxystrobin 28% suspension concentrate (SC 294 g a.i. ha⁻¹, three applications at a 7-day interval) in the year 2018, in China. To determine the residues of cyproconazole and azoxystrobin in cucumber, a quick, easy, cheap, effective, rugged, and safe (QuEChERS) method was developed using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. This validated method was applied to analyze cucumber samples collected from 12 specified regions. At the 3-day interval to harvest, the highest residue (HR) of azoxystrobin was 0.150 mg kg⁻¹, which was lower than the maximum residue limit (MRL; 0.5 mg kg⁻¹) permitted in China, and the HR of cyproconazole was 0.084 mg kg⁻¹, for which no MRL value has been set in China. The chronic risk quotient values of cyproconazole and azoxystrobin for Chinese adults at a 3-day interval to harvest were 2.56% and 13.72%, respectively. The acute risk quotient values of cyproconazole in cucumber were specified as 5.52% for children (1–6 years old) and 2.83% for the adults (> 18 years old) in China. These results indicate that cyproconazole·azoxystrobin 28% SC sprayed on cucumber at the pre-harvest interval of 3 days has no significant potential risk for Chinese consumers.

In this study, the safety and risk of fosthiazate as a nematicide against root-knot nematode in tomato and cherry tomato were evaluated. The dissipation and residue of fosthiazate for 28 days in tomatoes and cherry tomatoes were determined and studied by HPLC after simple, rapid pre-treatment. The mean recovery was 83.79~94.18%, and the relative standard deviations were 3.97~7.40%. Results showed that the half-lives of fosthiazate in tomatoes (4.81~5.37 days) were significantly lower than that in cherry tomatoes (5.25~5.73 days). At the pre-harvest interval (PHI) of 21 days, the residues of tomatoes and cherry tomatoes were 0.032~0.046 mg/kg, which were lower than the maximum residue level (MRL) established in China. The potential risks of fosthiazate exposure through the dietary intake of tomatoes and cherry tomatoes to different populations were also studied. According to the results of dietary risk assessment, the residual levels of fosthiazate were within the acceptable range of long-term dietary risk in different populations in China within the sampling interval of 21 days after the application of fosthiazate. Our results show that fosthiazate at 2250 g.a.i./ha in the field control of root-knot nematode has high safety and low risk, and can provide a reference for the safe and reasonable use of fosthiazate as a nematicide in the field.

The persistence of combination formulation of fluopyram 200 + tebuconazole 200–400 SC was evaluated across different agro-climates in India for the management of fungal diseases in two commercially important fruit crops, mango and pomegranate. The residues were extracted using quick easy cheap effective rugged and safe (QuEChERS) method and quantification was done on liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS). The fungicide degradation followed 1st-order kinetics and the half-lives were 2.9–6.4 days for mango, and 3.5–7.4 days for pomegranate for both the fungicides. On the basis of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) maximum residue limit (MRL) calculation, 1.0 mg kg⁻¹ MRL was obtained for fluopyram while for tebuconazole, it was 0.5 mg kg⁻¹ on mango, at the pre-harvest interval (PHI) of 5 days. For pomegranate, the respective MRLs were 1.0 mg kg⁻¹ and 0.7 mg kg⁻¹ at PHI of 7 days. The dietary risk assessment study indicated that % acceptable daily intake (% ADI) and % acute reference dose (% ARfD) were much lower than 100; thus, the application of fluopyram and tebuconazole on mango and pomegranate is unlikely to present public health concern.

Paraquat is a highly toxic and persistent pesticide in soil but is still used for wheat crops in many countries. Paraquat can pose potential health hazards if it is translocated from soil into wheat grains, but no study is available for its possible translocation causing wheat grain contamination. The present study aimed at finding out Paraquat residue in wheat grains under field conditions for two crop seasons to explore the sustainability of this pesticide. The experiments were conducted scientifically under field conditions at agricultural fields Pusa, Delhi, India. The soil texture was classified as sandy loam. Paraquat dichloride 24% SL (herbicide) was applied on five fields except for control field. Paraquat in wheat grains was analyzed using HPLC equipped with a photodiode array (PDA) detector. The method of analysis was validated for the pesticide residue recovery. The results showed that there was an alarming concentration of Paraquat in wheat grains ranging between 21.6 and 49.02 mg kg⁻¹ against maximum residue level of 0.1 mg kg⁻¹. Paraquat was also found in control crop (3.1 mg kg⁻¹) due to background residue in soil even when no Paraquat was applied. Furthermore, wheat flour samples from market also gave alarming Paraquat residue (20.39, 25.88, and 27.68 mg kg⁻¹). Paraquat residue was primarily dependent on % clay in field soils. More the % clay lesser was Paraquat residue in wheat grain. Thus, Paraquat was translocated from soil into wheat grains and resulted in worrying concentration of Paraquat residue in wheat grains. Consequently, use of Paraquat for wheat crops needs to be regulated as it contaminated the soil and resulted in the wheat grain contamination posing severe health hazards for humans.