The degradation of crop protection products (CPPs) at the soil surface by both biotic and abiotic mechanisms can be significant. The dominant abiotic degradation process is photolysis and although the process has been studied for many years the main drivers of this process and consequently its significance remain incompletely understood. The microbial communities at the soil surface are fundamentally distinct from those found below the soil surface. As a consequence the pattern of CPP degradation can also differ from those observed in bulk soil incubated in the dark. It is difficult to uncouple these processes as procedures used to isolate the key variables can themselves introduce unacceptable artifacts. Furthermore both processes are influenced by a complex interplay with environmental factors such light intensity, rainfall and temperature. This presentation will outline the work that Syngenta has conducted to elucidate the drivers and significance of these processes.

Elucidating the contribution of surface processes to the degradation of crop protection products

248th National Meeting (2014)

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