Comparing different techniques to assess the risk of dust drift from pesticide‐coated seeds

Abstract

It looks as if the Heubach dust meter underestimates the risk of dust drift. Using one of the alternative methods might be a more appropriate way to assess the abrasion potential of seeds. Given the low investment cost required, mechanical sieving seems to be a good approach for non-specialised labs. The individual sowing element set-up is the most realistic simulation of in-field dust drift generation but requires a higher initial investment. Therefore, this set-up is most suitable for specialised labs and is recommended for further research in this area. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Deposition of dust with active substances in pesticides from treated seeds in adjacent fields during drilling: disentangling the effects of various factors using an 8-year field experiment

“…Our results, obtained from field-realistic experiments, present a solid ground for the adoption of seed treatment quality parameters by means of the Heubach test in combination with active substance analysis and seed rate in the exposure assessment of insects in crops and bare fields adjacent to the drilled field. Foque et al ( 2017 ) argue in favour of other methods of measuring abrasion potential than the Heubach test, as the latter does not take the larger-size fraction of particles into account, which are probably more relevant for nontarget areas close to the drilling field edge. The present results, however, indicate a relevance of Heubach test results in the exposure assessment of dust drift for areas of up to 5 m from the drilling field edge, i.e.…”

Recent advances in seed coating technologies: transitioning toward sustainable agriculture

“…Foqué and coworkers compared seed drift potential of commercially available pre-treated seeds, calculated from Heubach dust meter (traditional method to determine drift potential from treated seeds) with values calculated from dust released from mechanical sieving of seed bags and from individual sowing element of a pneumatic seed drill. 28 Drift potential values calculated from Heubach readings were much lower than those obtained from mechanical and individual sowing techniques. This suggests that current methods to quantify drift potential from seed coatings should be corroborated with alternate approaches to accurately identify potential risks and adopt the necessary safety counter-measures.…”

“…27 Furthermore, deposition of the seed dust in surface and ground water reservoirs can result in water pollution. [28][29][30][31] Moreover, it is also suggested that risks associated with dustoff losses from coated seeds may potentially be underestimated. Foqué and coworkers compared seed drift potential of commercially available pre-treated seeds, calculated from Heubach dust meter (traditional method to determine drift potential from treated seeds) with values calculated from dust released from mechanical sieving of seed bags and from individual sowing element of a pneumatic seed drill.…”

Dust drift during mechanical and pneumatic wheat sowing and insights into the physicochemical characteristics of the abraded dust

“…It should be noted, however, that the Heubach test considers only the fine dust fraction and not the coarser particles. 20,26 3.2 Physicochemical characteristics of abraded dust…”