Overuse results in enhanced contamination of ground and surface water, leading
to the risk of pesticides ultimately reaching drinking water supplies and; hence,
directly affecting human health. The reported experimental field studies in Thailand
and Vietnam on pesticide exposure assessment have yielded a comprehensive
picture of the key processes governing pesticide loss to non-target areas. The
significant transported pesticide masses highlight the importance of developing
cost-effective management strategies to minimize the fraction of applied pesticides
lost and; hence, the contamination of non-target ecosystems.
As a result, greater effort is needed to reduce pesticide risks in mountainous
areas. Solutions should include, among others, the provision of training and education for both farmers and retailers, aimed at raising awareness of the risks of using
pesticides, addressing environmental concerns regarding their use and providing
instruction on their proper handling. The key to the successful reduction of pesticide risk is obtaining the commitment of all the parties involved, so the role of
regulatory authorities has to be to further control and eliminate the use of these
hazardous and persistent pesticides by means of national pesticide regulations. In
this regard; however, the authorities have to maintain a balance between restraining
access to hazardous pesticides and meeting the needs of farmers by providing cost
effective, suitable and sustainable pest management alternatives.
Acknowledgments We would like to thank Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), the
National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) and the Ministry of Science and Technology
(MOST), Vietnam for their funding of the Uplands Program (SFB 564), and also Georg Cadisch
and Camille Saint-Macary for their helpful comments, Gary Morrison for reading through the
English, and Peter Elstner for helping with the layout.
References
Anyusheva M, Lamers M, Schwadorf K, Streck T (2011) Analysis of pesticides in surface water in
remote areas in Vietnam: coping with matrix effects and test of long-term storage stability. Int J
Environ Anal Chem 92(7):797–809
Anyusheva M, Lamers M, La N, Nguyen VV, Streck T (2012) Fate of pesticides in combined
paddy rice-fish pond farming systems in Northern Vietnam. J Environ Qual 41:515–525
Buttle JM, McDonald DJ (2002) Coupled vertical and lateral preferential flow on a forested slope.
Water Resour Res 39:181–187
Cheng HH (1990) Pesticides in the soil environment-An overview. In: Cheng HH (ed) Pesticides
in the soil environment: processes, impacts, and modelling, vol 2, SSSA book series. Soil
Science Society of America, Madison
Ciglasch H, Amelung W, Totrakool S, Kaupenjohann M (2005) Water flow patterns and pesticide
fluxes in an upland soil in northern Thailand. Eur J Soil Sci 56:765–777
Commission of the European Communities (2003) Technical guidance document on risk assessment in support of commission directive 93/67/EEC on risk assessment for new notified
substances and the commission regulation (EC) No 1488/94 on risk assessment for existing
substances. Part II
Open Access. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
Non-commercial License, which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
4 Agricultural Pesticide Use in Mountainous Areas of Thailand and Vietnam. . .
171
to the risk of pesticides ultimately reaching drinking water supplies and; hence,
directly affecting human health. The reported experimental field studies in Thailand
and Vietnam on pesticide exposure assessment have yielded a comprehensive
picture of the key processes governing pesticide loss to non-target areas. The
significant transported pesticide masses highlight the importance of developing
cost-effective management strategies to minimize the fraction of applied pesticides
lost and; hence, the contamination of non-target ecosystems.
As a result, greater effort is needed to reduce pesticide risks in mountainous
areas. Solutions should include, among others, the provision of training and education for both farmers and retailers, aimed at raising awareness of the risks of using
pesticides, addressing environmental concerns regarding their use and providing
instruction on their proper handling. The key to the successful reduction of pesticide risk is obtaining the commitment of all the parties involved, so the role of
regulatory authorities has to be to further control and eliminate the use of these
hazardous and persistent pesticides by means of national pesticide regulations. In
this regard; however, the authorities have to maintain a balance between restraining
access to hazardous pesticides and meeting the needs of farmers by providing cost
effective, suitable and sustainable pest management alternatives.
Acknowledgments We would like to thank Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG), the
National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) and the Ministry of Science and Technology
(MOST), Vietnam for their funding of the Uplands Program (SFB 564), and also Georg Cadisch
and Camille Saint-Macary for their helpful comments, Gary Morrison for reading through the
English, and Peter Elstner for helping with the layout.
References
Anyusheva M, Lamers M, Schwadorf K, Streck T (2011) Analysis of pesticides in surface water in
remote areas in Vietnam: coping with matrix effects and test of long-term storage stability. Int J
Environ Anal Chem 92(7):797–809
Anyusheva M, Lamers M, La N, Nguyen VV, Streck T (2012) Fate of pesticides in combined
paddy rice-fish pond farming systems in Northern Vietnam. J Environ Qual 41:515–525
Buttle JM, McDonald DJ (2002) Coupled vertical and lateral preferential flow on a forested slope.
Water Resour Res 39:181–187
Cheng HH (1990) Pesticides in the soil environment-An overview. In: Cheng HH (ed) Pesticides
in the soil environment: processes, impacts, and modelling, vol 2, SSSA book series. Soil
Science Society of America, Madison
Ciglasch H, Amelung W, Totrakool S, Kaupenjohann M (2005) Water flow patterns and pesticide
fluxes in an upland soil in northern Thailand. Eur J Soil Sci 56:765–777
Commission of the European Communities (2003) Technical guidance document on risk assessment in support of commission directive 93/67/EEC on risk assessment for new notified
substances and the commission regulation (EC) No 1488/94 on risk assessment for existing
substances. Part II
Open Access. This chapter is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution
Non-commercial License, which permits any noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in
any medium, provided the original author(s) and source are credited.
4 Agricultural Pesticide Use in Mountainous Areas of Thailand and Vietnam. . .
171