How do pesticides differ between agricultural and urban areas?
The pesticides and degradates detected most frequently in streams and ground water in agricultural and urban areas were mainly those with the most extensive use—either during the study period or historically. Five herbicides commonly used in urban areas—simazine, prometon, tebuthiuron, 2,4-D, and diuron—and three commonly used insecticides—diazinon, chlorpyrifos, and carbaryl—were most frequently detected in the urban streams sampled, often at higher concentrations than in agricultural streams. The most frequently detected herbicides that are used mainly for agriculture—atrazine, metolachlor, cyanazine, alachlor, and acetochlor—generally were detected most often and at the highest concentrations in water samples from streams in agricultural areas with their greatest use, particularly in the Corn Belt.
Related Questions
- Why do pesticides exceed water-quality benchmarks for aquatic life and fish-eating wildlife more often in urban areas than in agricultural areas?
- What are the specific functional classifications and how do they differ for rural vs. urban areas?
- How do pesticides differ between agricultural and urban areas?
