In the UK, the increasing use of ready-to-use (RTUs) pesticide products and recycling means that government advice regarding the disposal of home and garden pesticide containers may no longer be appropriate. The aim of the project was to assess the risk to humans and the environment of disposing of used, amateur pesticide containers via recycling, and to compare the risks identified with those arising from landfill and incineration which would result from disposal via a dustbin. The study generated a quantitative model comparing the predicted human or environmental exposure to an exposure threshold to assess the likelihood of an adverse risk occurring. The environmental risk associated with the disposal of residue in part-filled bottles and rinsate from empty bottles was predicted to be below the trigger threshold for four of the five compounds tested. The calculations indicated a moderate risk for fish and algae arising, with and without rinsing, for the remaining compound. Human exposure associated with the disposal of RTU bottles was consistently below the acceptable operator exposure limit (AOEL). Human exposure associated with the disposal of concentrate bottles was consistently below the AOEL for all disposal routes, as long as there was no spillage of partially-filled bottles.

Disposal of amateur pesticide containers: Environmental and health risks for different disposal routes

248th National Meeting (2014)

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