Residues of endosulfan in cotton growing area of Vehari, Pakistan: an assessment of knowledge and awareness of pesticide use and health risks

Abstract

This study is based on self-reported information collected from selected farmers of Vehari District, Punjab, Pakistan, to determine their technical knowledge and awareness about pesticide use and associated environmental and health risks. Moreover, soil contamination by routinely used persistent organochlorine pesticide, endosulfan, was also evaluated. Survey data revealed very low literacy rate (on an average 9th grade education) and technical knowledge (almost missing) of the farmers in Vehari District. The farmers are unable to fully read and understand the instructions about the use of pesticide marked on the containers. They are not fully aware of pesticide persistence and toxicity (73%), unable to identify cotton pests and diseases (86%), and do not know which crop to grow in cotton adjacent fields (100%). Data also revealed that the farmers (100%) do not follow safety measure during pesticide application and are unaware of pesticide toxicity symptoms in human as well as the basic first-aid practices (89%).Poor literacy rate and lack of technical knowledge of farmers in Vehari regarding pesticide use and handling are posing serious environmental and health risks among the local inhabitants, particularly among farmers. Soil analysis results showed that concentration of α- and β-endosulfan ranged from 0-14 to 0-14.64 μg/mg, respectively. Principal component analysis showed that soil organic matter is the key soil parameter controlling the occurrence and fate of endosulfan under sandy loam soil conditions of Vehari District. There is a serious need of improving technical and environmental knowledge of farmer about pesticide risks on human health in the studied area, in particular, and the entire country in general. Findings are of great use for policymaking in Pakistan to minimize pesticide risks in Pakistan.

Suicide by poisoning in Pakistan: review of regional trends, toxicity and management of commonly used agents in the past three decades

“…They found that because women are not involved in the decision making around pesticide use and work both in the fields and in the home where pesticides are stored, they are at increased risk of poisoning.’ 101 Corresponding to these findings, several studies have investigated suboptimal or a complete lack of knowledge and awareness of pesticide hazards in these regions. 102 – 104 Although unintentional poisoning is beyond the scope of this paper, this information is crucial in providing a glimpse of the problem and how it relates to easy accessibility and means for self-harm and suicide.…”

Life Cycle Based Comparison of Textile Ecolabels

“…Nevertheless, existing literature highlights further hotspots. As demonstrated in several studies, toxicity effects are particularly relevant in the raw material production (e.g., due to application of pesticides in the cotton cultivation [65,66] or input of chemicals during the production of man-made fibres [67] and textile manufacturing (e.g., mainly due to the input of dyes and auxiliary materials during the textile finishing) phases. While all labels (except CmiA) have a strong focus on the textile manufacturing step, for which several restrictions and thresholds with regard to the usage of toxic substances are provided, toxicity impacts in the raw material production stage are addressed only by three labels.…”

Drivers of farmers’ intention to adopt integrated pest management: a case study of vegetable farmers in Pakistan

“…In Pakistan, the use of pesticides has increased significantly over the past years (Tariq et al 2007). Recent studies suggest that lack of training and awareness about integrated pest management often pushes farmers toward irrational pesticide use (Ahmad et al 2019).…”