Abstract

Environment pollution related to pesticides has been confirmed by the scientific community for a long time, but the available information on the impact of this phenomenon on human health and the ecosystem are still insufficient. Contamination of the environment can occur through various pathways, ground deposits during the application of pesticides to crops are one of those pathways. The retention rate of sprayed droplets is an important factor both for the efficacy of the phytosanitary treatment and the quantities of lost pesticides on the ground. This paper presents an overview of factors that affect spray droplet behavior, involved process in sprayed drop fate and the mainly techniques for measuring pesticide deposits to the ground and plant retention. We present studies that have focused on pesticide retention and soil deposition during crop spraying in relation to sprayer equipment, used formulation and climatic factors. Plant retention and pesticide deposits during spray is a complex problem depending mainly on physical sprayer parameters, climatic conditions, spray properties and chemical formulation. By illustrating the large variety of analytical methods during the recently years, it aims to explain that it is always possible to assess the impact of pesticides in all compartments of the environment. The use of concerned molecules and natural collectors is the safest to evaluate the real situation, but the use of tracers and artificial targets is both very reported and safety for the environment.

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