Characterization of Health and Environmental Risks of Pesticide Use in Market-Gardening in the Rural City of Tori-Bossito in Benin, West Africa

Abstract

A study on the use of pesticides in market-gardening production was carried out on 108 market-gardeners in the rural city of Tori-Bossito in Southern Benin. The objective of the study was to characterize the potential risks of pesticides usage by farmers and the impacts on their health and on the environment. Two risk indexes were calculated for each pesticide: an environmental risk index (ERI) and a health risk index (HRI). First stage larva of the mosquito <i>Aedes aegypti</i> were used as bio-indicator for detecting insecticide residue in vegetable before their harvesting on the farms. The highest ERI were obtained for carbofuran, chlorpyriphos ethyl and endosulfan. Pesticide residues were found in 42% of the samples of leaves of eggplant, cucumber, amaranth and solanum. Vegetables growers used pesticides that may be highly hazardous and which were not registered in most cases. These situations could have unexpected consequences including the exposure of consumers to health hazards

Pesticide use practices among smallholder vegetable farmers in Ethiopian Central Rift Valley

“…Empirically, specific studies have shown the high human and environmental risks of unsafe use of pesticides in many African countries such as Ghana (Ntow et al 2006), Tanzania (Ngowi et al 2007), Botswana (Obopile et al 2008), Ethiopia (Jansen and Harmsen 2011), Benin (Ahouangninou et al 2012), Uganda (Kateregga 2012), Kenya (Macharia et al 2013). Other parts of sub-Saharan Africa have similar problems with the widespread use of highly toxic and illegal pesticides (Ecobichon 2001;Williamson et al 2008;Handford et al 2015).…”

“…Coupled with high-yielding crop varieties and increased land for crop production, significant yield improvements were achieved. However, this was realized at the expense of the natural environment and the health of farmers (UNU 2003;Pimentel 2005;Panuwet et al 2012;Hoi et al 2009Hoi et al , 2013Ahouangninou et al 2012). Since Rachel Carson's Silent Spring attention has been given to the hazards of extensive pesticides use in developed and developing countries (e.g.…”

High environmental risk and low yield of urban tomato gardens in Benin

“…It suggests that farmers had difficulties to extrapolate the dosage from a hectare basis to very small plot areas. According to Ahouangninou et al (2012), the chlorpyrifos ethyl, the pyrethroids, the carbofuran, and the mancozeb present particularly high toxicological risks for the environment and for human health. Monitoring the fate of those active substances within the environment, e.g., following crops, soil, air, and water table would be of particular interest for better quantifying the risk associated to pesticide use for tomato urban gardens.…”

“…Moreover, pesticide use is expected to increase due to urbanization, the prevalence of the informal sector and climate change (de Bon et al 2014). The few studies analyzing pesticide use in such contexts suggested poor pesticide practices, i.e., frequent treatments with large rates of unsuitable active substances with respect to the target pest (Rosendahl et al 2009;Ahouangninou et al 2012). In Benin for example, a clear identification of the pests is not part of the key factors influencing the use of pesticides by the farmers (de Bon et al 2014).…”

Environmental risk assessment of pesticides in Ethiopia : a case of surface water systems

“…These findings support the use of model-based risk assessment procedures in the Ethiopian pesticide registration system, although further model validation studies need to be undertaken for the introduction of this modern approach in Ethiopia. Similar risk assessment projects elsewhere in Africa found some high risks to humans and aquatic organisms from pesticide use by small-scale farmers (Ahouangninou et al 2012;Ansara-Ross et al 2008;Malherbe et al 2013;Jepson et al 2014). …”