PESTICIDE Adverse human health and environmental effects Agricultural pesticides are, however, deliberately manufactured as poisons, albeit to destroy agricultural pests. By the same token, these chemicals may result in extensive damage to human health and the environment. Adverse human health effects or symptoms of agricultural pesticide contamination include headache, body weakness, blurred vision, vomiting, irritability, impaired concentration and abdominal pain. Other effects include the suppression of the human immune system, non-institutional depression, asthma, reduced sperm concentration and vigor, blood and liver diseases, and nerve damage. Unfortunately, the adverse health effects of some agricultural pesticides may be latent and insidious and may therefore not be traceable to the incriminating pesticide. Also, adverse health effects such as nausea, body weakness and sweating may be confused with flu which has similar symptoms. In addition, the adverse effects of chronic cases – exposure to relatively low levels of pesticides over a long time period – are not well understood as the symptoms are relatively unobservable, and the health consequences may be delayed. Apart from the adverse effects of the active ingredients of agricultural pesticides, the inert ingredients and impurities may pose more serious adverse health effects. For example, dioxins may be present as impurities in agricultural pesticides while carbon tetrachloride and chloroform often used as inactive ingredients pose substantial risks to the liver and the nervous system. The adverse effects of agricultural pesticide contamination are not limited to human health but extend to the environment. Pesticide residues may enter streams through run-off and pose dangers to fish, birds, wild animals and plants in the aquatic habitat. In addition, persistent pesticides such as DDT pesticide may bioaccumulate, move through the food chain and eventually be ingested by and adversely affect birds, wild animals and domestic livestock. For example, DDT is implicated in the thinning of the egg shell of bald eagle. The effect of the indiscriminate and excessive use of pesticides on the environment was chronicled by Rachel Carson’s book, Silent Spring, considered by many as instrumental in spurring the environmental movement in the U. S. in the 1960s. Methyl bromide which is currently being replaced by phosphine for the fumigation of stored cocoa beans has been identified as an ozone-depleting substance.
Posted on: Thu, 28 Aug 2014 07:02:24 +0000