Agrochemicals in the Philippines

All about Agriculture Chemicals - Agrochemical is a generic term for the various chemical products used in agriculture. Refers to the broad range of: insecticides fertilizers herbicides growth agents fungicides animal manure - Most agrichemicals are toxic, and all agrichemicals in bulk storage pose significant environmental and/or health risks, particularly in the event of accidental spills. In the case of herbicides
Classified based on: time of application, mode of action, and selectivity

Time of Application - pre- plant herbicides (PP) - pre- emergence herbicides (PRE) - post- emergence herbicides (POST) Mode of Action - contact herbicides: applied to foliage and other above- ground parts of the plant e.g.: Propanil - translocated herbicides: absorbed by plant roots or above- ground parts of the plant e.g.: 2,4- D & Cyhalofop Butyl Selectivity - Selective: a herbicide that kills or stunts some plant species with little or
no injury to others, especially to the crop.

e.g.: Glyphosphate e.g.: Butachlor e.g.: 2,4- D

e.g.: Butachlor, Thiobencarb, Propnail & 2,4 -D - Non- Selective: a herbicide that kills all plant species e.g: Glyphosphate Factors to consider - Residual nature of Agrochemicals - Label and Instructions - Right Doses

Impact of Agrochemicals on Soil and Water Quality

- Agrochemical pesticides are still very important in crop protection in the Philippines - only around 15% of the preparation hits the target, the rest is distributed in the soil and air - Agrochemicals in soil can move from the surface when they are dissolved in runoff water, or when they percolate down through the soil. Those that have infiltrated the soil will eventually reach the groundwater - It is the local hydrology, and the type of soils that comprise the subsurface profile and the groundwater aquifer, which mainly determine how much pesticide leaches into the groundwater Rice Ecosystem in the Philippines - rice production can be considered a major contributor to pesticide contamination of the environment - It is a common practice for water to be drained from treated paddy fields into irrigation canals about 40 days before the rice is harvested - In a rice irrigation system, all runoff from rice fields is collected in the main drainage system. This ultimately discharges the effluent into a large water body such as a river or lake, or the sea. - in rural areas of the Philippines most rice farmers depend on groundwater from shallow aquifers underneath rice fields for their household water supply Case in Laguna and Nueva Ecija - residues of pesticides used in rice production were monitored by collecting groundwater from tube wells adjacent to rice fields in both irrigated and rainfed areas in Laguna and Nueva Ecija - commonly used pesticides were detected, including chlorpyrifos, butachlor, endosulfan, carbofuran, methyl parathion and monocrotophos