Pesticide contamination in the South Cone: a review.

• Autor(a) principal: RODRIGUES, G. S.
• Data de Publicação: 1998
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Institucional da EMBRAPA (Repository Open Access to Scientific Information from EMBRAPA - Alice)
• Texto Completo: http://www.alice.cnptia.embrapa.br/alice/handle/doc/13088
• topic: Contamination; Food; Heavy metal; Rural worker; Legislation; agricultural products; environment; environmental degradation; public health; soil; water

Pesticide residues, especially of organochlorinated compounds, occur in all environmental compartments, from agricultural fields to the most remote areas of the earth. Information about the presence of pesticides in the South Cone is relatively limited and scattered, making it difficult to depict the state of our environment. This paper reviews the scientific literature on pesticide and residue contamination in the environment, food, feed and biologic matrices, and the exposure of rural workers and the general public to pesticides in the South Cone. Although pesticide contamination in the region seems to be similar to or smaller than that occurring in other areas of the globe, it is ubiquitous and problems of human exposure and intoxication are too common. The emergence of the South Cone as commercial block fostered by the Mercosur provides an opportunity for the countries of the region to restate their position on matters of pesticide contamination, and to devise new policies with industry in order to minimize the environmental impacts of pesticides.