Currently used pesticides have been found in urban aquatic environments throughout the U.S., sometimes at concentrations that exceed aquatic life protection benchmarks. Conventional and antimicrobial pesticides are commonly detected in the two primary types of water discharges from urban areas: municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent and urban runoff. Pesticides are washed into sewers and storm drains during or after specific types of both indoor and outdoor pesticide applications or as a consequence of pesticide handling activities. A conceptual model of pesticide transport from urban areas to surface waters was developed, based on a literature review, pesticide product labels, California pesticide sales and reported use data, pesticide user surveys, and unpublished data from municipal urban runoff programs and municipal wastewater treatment plants. The conceptual model is intended to serve as a tool to prioritize further investigations of pesticide sources, and to develop appropriate strategies for preventing and mitigating urban pesticides water pollution.

Sources of pesticides in urban runoff and wastewater discharges: A conceptual model

248th National Meeting (2014)

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