The occurrence of pesticide residues in the aquatic environment is a concern in several countries. Since 2008, Brazil is the major consumer of pesticides in the world, but it does not have an effective monitoring program of pesticide residues in water. From the 380 registered active ingredients, only 26 are regulated (CONAMA 357/2005). To select the pesticides to be regulated, it is necessary to consider the amount of substance used, their potential hazard to non-target species, their physical-chemical characteristics and their occurrence in the aquatic environment. The objective of this work was to verify the occurrence of 19 active ingredients that are used in Brazil. Surface water samples were collected at different sites located in agricultural areas from February 2013 to February 2014. Pesticide determination was performed using solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (SPE-LC-MS/MS). Among the 19 active ingredients analyzed, 16 were detected at least once. The detection frequency varied between 2 and 85%. Carbendazim, imidacloprid and atrazine were the most frequently detected active ingredients, with 85%, 54% and 46%, respectively. Only 3 of 19 active ingredients are included in the CONAMA 357(2005) and were detected in concentrations below the maximum allowed values. Based on the information obtained so far, no risk to aquatic life is expected for the active ingredients in the monitoring program.

Preliminary risk assessment of pesticides for the protection of aquatic life in Brazil

248th National Meeting (2014)

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