Synthetic Pyrethroids Pesticide Residues in Soils and Drinking Water Sources from Cocoa Farms in Ghana

Abstract

The contamination of pesticides in 32 soils and 64 drinking water samples was investigated from cocoa farms in the Dormaa West District of Ghana to assess pollution status. A total of nine synthetic pyrethroids pesticides were measured with a high resolution Varian CP-3800 Gas Chromatograph equipped with 63 Ni electron capture detector (ECD). Eight synthetic pyrethroid residues namely fenvalerate, deltamethrin, cypermethrin, bifenthrin, permethrin, lambda-cyhalothrin, allethrin and cyfluthrin were detected with lambda-cyhalothrin and allethrin occurring most frequently in soil and water respectively. The concentrations of synthetic pyrethroids residues in the soil samples were in the ranges of; 0.02-0.03 mg/kg for lambda-cyhalothrin, 0.010-0.02 mg/kg for allethrin, 0.010-0.04 mg/kg for cyfluthrin, <0.01-0.04 mg/kg for cypermethrin, 0.02-0.06 mg/kg for deltamethrin, and <0.01-0.03 mg/kg for bifenthrin. Similarly, the synthetic pyrethroids residues in the water samples were in the ranges of; 0.01-0.05 µg/L for allethrin, 0.01-0.04 µg/L for fenvalerate, 0.01-0.04 µg/L for cypermethrin and 0.01-0.05 µg/L for deltamethrin. The concentrations of synthetic pyrethroids pesticide residues recorded in the soil samples analysed were generally below and within their respective US MRLs for agricultural soils, except the mean concentration values recorded for pesticides such as lambda-cyhalothrin at Diabaa (S2) and Krakrom (S3), allethrin at Diabaa (S2) and deltamethrin at Kwakuanya (S4), which were above their respective US MRLs for agricultural soils. The trends of synthetic pyrethroids pesticide residues in the water samples analysed from the various distances to cocoa farms decreased with an increase of water source to cocoa farm (ranking; 0-15m>16-30m>above 30m). All synthetic pyrethroids pesticide residues recorded in the water samples were below and within their respective WHO MRLs for drinking water except for deltamethrin, which exceeded the WHO MRL at Kwakuanya (S4) at distance 0-15m from a cocoa farm. The presence of synthetic pyrethroids residues in the soil and water samples analysed is an indication of the use of the pesticide by cocoa farmers in the study area. The routine monitoring of pesticide residues in the study area is necessary for the control and reduction of environmental pollution.

Relating High Insecticide Residues in Larval Breeding Habitats in Urban Residential Areas to the Selection of Pyrethroid Resistance in Anopheles gambiae s.l. (Diptera: Culicidae) in Akim Oda, Ghana

“…Previous studies in Ghana have found insecticide contamination in soil, drinking water, surface water, fishes, and mosquito-breeding habitats ( Achonduh et al 2008 , Essumang 2015 , Gbeddy et al 2015 , Fosu-Mensah et al 2016 ). However all of them were associated with agricultural activities or large water bodies that receive runoff from several sources including agricultural areas.…”

Pyrethroid residues on tropical soil of an Indonesian tea plantation: analytical method development, monitoring, and risk assessment

“…So far, there has been only one study exploring the presence of pyrethroids in the soil of tea plantation, e.g., in India [18], but unfortunately, none of synthetic pyrethroids were detected in the soils of that region, therefore, pyrethroid levels detected in the present study were compared with those in other studies that successfully detected pyrethroid residues in soils from various tropical ecosystems. In previous studies conducted in different types of tropical plantation [13,[15][16][17], deltamethrin was detected in cotton/wheat soil (6 × 10 − 5 − 1.8 μg g − 1 ), chestnut soil (< LoD -0.03 μg g − 1 ), walnut soil (< LoD -0.02 μg g − 1 ), pinenut soil (< LoD -0.005 μg g − 1 ), cabbage soil (0.007-0.008 μg g − 1 ), and cacao soil (0.04 μg g − 1 ). Meanwhile, permethrin has never been detected in plantation soils but it was detected in rivers near the plantation (< 100 μg L − 1 ) [6].…”

“…Furthermore, the risk assessment of synthetic pyrethroids in the tropical soil of a tea plantation has never been performed due to the absence of pyrethroids detected in the soils. Numerous studies to determine and monitor pyrethroids in various plantation and farmland in tropical countries, including Malaysia [12], China [13], India [14], Pakistan [15], the Philippines [16], and Ghana [17] have been conducted. However, there is limited information regarding the presence of pyrethroids in the tropical soil of tea plantation such as in West Bengal, India [18].…”

Spatial Availability of Nitrogen and Pesticides in the Surface Layers of Agricultural Soils of Tropical Hydrosystems in the Wet Season: Case of the B&#233;r&#233; Watershed in C&amp;ocirc;te d’Ivoire (West Africa)

“…Indeed, the soils of hydrosystems constitute the compartment of the environment that is heavily contaminated by these agrochemicals, even though they constitute the interface of interactions with other compartments of the environment [10] [11] [12]. In addition, water resources and food products, especially those in developing countries in West Africa that do not have permanent quality monitoring, remain the environmental Journal of Agricultural Chemistry and Environment compartments most exposed to the increasing contamination of soils by nitrogen and pesticides [13]- [19]. On the other hand, the transfer of these agricultural pollutants to the water resources of a catchment area appears to be more important during flood periods, in both dissolved and particulate form, depending on several control factors [20] [21] [22].…”