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Pesticide Environmental Risk Indicator


Pesticide Environmental Risk Indicator

Introduction :

C. Nilsson developed this indicator for Sweden. This model is designed as a part of a system of indicators that could be used by farmers to record and evaluate possible environmental risk over time as part of an ISO 14001 certification process. The PERI model uses a ranking methodology that assesses chemical properties of the pesticide and toxicity values of the pesticides on a 1-5 scale. The environmental compartments considered are the groundwater compartment, the surface water compartment, and the air compartment. Rather than considering each compartment separately, PERI groups all of the variables that occur from different compartments in one equation to arrive at an environmental risk score.

References:

  • Nilsson, C. 1999. PERI. In J. Reus, P. Leendertse, C. Bockstaller, I. Fomsgaard, V. Gutsche, K. Lewis, C. Nilsson, L. Pussemier, M. Trevisan, H. van der Werf, F. Alfarroba, S. Blümel, J. Isart, D. McGrath, T. Seppälä (eds), Comparing Environmental Risk Indicators for Pesticides: Results of the European CAPER Project. Utrecht, The Netherlands: Centre for Agriculture and the Environment. 121-124.
  • Reus, J., Leendertse, P., Bockstaller, C., Fomsgaard, I., Gutsche, V., Lewis, K., Nilsson, C., Pussemier, L., Trevisan, M., van der Werf, H., Alfarroba, F., Blumel, S., Isart, J., McGrath, D., Seppala, T. 2002. Comparison and evaluation of eight pesticide environmental risk indicators developed in Europe and recommendations for future use. Agriculture, Ecosystems, and Environment 90, 177-187.


Equations :

  1. Environmental Risk Score =
    (GUSscore*Henry'sConstantscore)+(BeeEC50score+Wormscore+
    DaphniaLC50score+AlgaeEC50score + Soil Microbescore)/5)*(Kowscore)/10

    This environmental risk score can then be manipulated with actual application data to arrive at a Final Indicator of Environmental Risk.

  2. Final Indicator of Environmental Risk =
    Environmental Risk Score *(Actual Application Rate/Standard Application Rate)
Ranking Scheme
  • GUS

    1
    <0
    2
    0-1
    3
    1.0-1.8
    4
    1.8-2.8
    5
    >2.8

  • Henry's Constant

    1
    <1
    2
    1-5
    3
    5-25
    4
    25-100
    5
    >100

  • Kow

    1
    <3.0
    5
    ≥3.0

  • BCF

    1
    <100
    3
    100-1000
    5
    >1000

  • LC50/EC50 Daphnia

    1
    >100 mg/L
    2
    10-100 mg/L
    3
    1-10 mg/L
    4
    0.1-1 mg/L
    5
    >0.1 mg/L

  • LC50 Earthworm

    1
    >1000 mg/kg
    2
    1000-100 mg/kg
    3
    10-100 mg/kg
    4
    1-10 mg/kg
    5
    <1 mg/kg

  • LC50 Bees

    1
    >100 mg/bee
    2
    10-100 mg/bee
    3
    1-10 mg/bee
    4
    0.1-1 mg/bee
    5
    <0.1 mg/bee

List of Symbols :

Symbol
Description & Units
Actual Application Rate
Amount of the pesticide's active ingredient applied (g/ha)
Standard Application Rate
Recommended label rate application of the pesticide's active ingredient (g/ha)


Analysis :

In previous research, this indicator has not correlated with other environmental indicators (see the Reus et al. reference above). However, it should be noted that this does not invalidate this model. Potential users of this model should note that toxicity values for soil microbes are difficult to locate. As a result, that part of equation (1) may have to be left blank.

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