Pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and other agrochemicals are used on farms to protect crop yield and quality and in urban and residential settings to control pests and weeds. Despite important uses, agrochemicals can leach into soil and groundwater or flow into surface waters, where the chemicals can adversely affect human and environmental health. Agrochemicals can also accumulate in edible organisms, creating food safety concerns and contaminating livestock feed and manure.
Though progress has been made on sustainable alternatives, agrochemical use will remain a cornerstone of agriculture for years to come. Understanding the fate, transport, and impacts of agrochemicals is key to minimizing the risks associated with them.
Since 1956, a team of researchers from 20+ Agricultural Experiment Stations has used traditional and emerging approaches to characterize the fate of agrochemicals in agricultural, urban, and natural areas; determine adverse impacts from agrochemical exposure to cells, organisms, and ecosystems; and develop technologies that mitigate the adverse impacts of agrochemicals.
The team’s research and Extension has provided key information and technology to regulatory agencies, agrochemical manufacturers, farmers, and others, helping them make prudent decisions about pesticide use, management, and policy.
Source: Multistate Research Fund Impacts Program
Read the full impact statement.
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