Concentration levels of new-generation fungicides in throughfall released by foliar wash-off from vineyards

The presence of agricultural pesticides in the environment and their effects on ecosystems are major concerns addressed in a significant number of articles. However, limited information is available on the pesticide concentrations released from crops. This study reports losses of new-generation fungicides by foliar wash-off from vineyards and their potential impact on the concentrations of their main active substances (AS) in surface waters. Two experimental plots devoted to vineyards were treated with various combinations of commercial new-generation fungicide formulations. Then, up to sixteen throughfall collectors were installed under the canopy. Concentrations of sixteen different AS in throughfall were determined along nine rainfall episodes. Concentrations in throughfall far exceeded the maximum permissible levels for drinking water established by the European Union regulations. Dynamics of fungicide release indicated a first-flush effect in the wash-off founding the highest concentrations of AS in the first rain episodes after application of the fungicides. This article shows that foliar spray application of commercial formulations of new-generation fungicides does not prevent the release of their AS to soil or the runoff. Concentration data obtained in this research can be valuable in supporting the assessment of environmental effects of new-generation fungicides and modeling their environmental fate.

Rainfall-induced removal of copper-based spray residues from vines

The continuous use of copper against fungal diseases and off-target effects causes major environmental and agronomic problems. However, the rain-induced removal of Cu-based residues is known only for a limited number of crops. We present the results of rain-induced removal of fungicides from two monitored vineyard plots which were sprayed with two widely used Cu-based formulations: copper-oxychloride (CO) and Bordeaux mixture (BM), respectively. Cu removal per growing season was 0.60±0.12kgha(-1) (30% of the applied fungicide) for CO and 0.80±0.10kgha(-1) for BM (70% of the applied fungicide). Fractioning the Cu in soluble (CuS) and particulate fractions (CuP) showed that most of the Cu was removed as CuP, but CuS concentrations found in throughfall collectors exceeded the regulatory threshold for toxicity in surface waters. The first few millimeters of rain caused most of the Cu removal. Our findings agreed with the data reported in the scientific literature, in which a significant fraction of the Cu-based formulation is loosely attached to the plant surfaces. In addition, we found that rainfall energy had a minor influence on the removal.

Modeling raindrop strike performance on copper wash-off from vine leaves

Copper lost in foliar wash-off from vine leaves treated with Cu-based fungicides was analyzed with a single-drop rainfall simulator. The temporal losses of the particulate Cu (CuP) and the solution Cu (CuS) from raindrop strikes on leaves were modeled using a Poisson point process. This model estimated maximum detachment rates of 0.82 ng CuP and 0.033 ng CuS per raindrop. The total amount of Cu (CuT) in the leaves before rainfall ranged between 0.4 and 4.4 g Cu kg(-1) dry weight. Wash-off reduced the amount of CuT present in the leaves by 0.6 g kg(-1). Particulate losses of CuT ranged from 75 to 90%, while soluble losses of CuT ranged from 10 to 25%. The kinetic energy of the raindrops influenced the loss of CuS but not the loss of CuP. The Poisson point approach can provide an interesting starting point to model non-point source pollution produced from agricultural chemicals washed-off by rain.

Influence of the adjuvants in a commercial formulation of the fungicide "Switch" on the adsorption of their active ingredients: cyprodinil and fludioxonil, on soils devoted to vineyard

The objective of this work was to assess the effect of adjuvants in the sorption in soils of the fungicides, cyprodinil and fludioxonil, usually applied together in a mixture commonly called 'Switch'. Water suspensions of a commercial formulation of Switch were used in phase partition experiments for a set of selected soils from vineyards. A clean-up procedure of the supernatant was developed for the phase separation in presence of the adjuvants prior to quantification of cyprodinil and fludioxonil. The maximum sorption on the solid phase (which includes soil and other solids from the commercial formulation of Switch) was 2000 mg kg(-1) for fludioxonil and 3000 mg kg(-1) for cyprodinil after incubation with 800 mg L(-1) of Switch. However, adsorption to soil particles were lower; fludioxonil concentrations adsorbed in soils range from 50 to 80 mg kg(-1) of soil and cyprodinil concentrations range from 120 to 260 mg kg(-1) of soil. Adjuvants increased the solubility of fludioxonil in pure water at 25 °C up to 5 times that of the pure substance (from 1.8 to 9 mg L(-1) in control samples), and show a strong influence on the adsorption in soil. Soil pH, effective cation exchange capacity and copper content due to past anti fungal copper-based sprays, have also influence on the adsorption of the active ingredients in presence of adjuvants.

Influence of phosphorus on Cu sorption kinetics: stirred flow chamber experiments

A stirred flow reactor was used to study the influence of phosphorus on the adsorption and desorption kinetics of copper in two acid soils on granite and amphibolite. The presence of P was found to significantly increase Cu adsorption in both soils, albeit at different types of sites (mainly in slow adsorption sites in the soil on granite, and both in fast and slow adsorption sites in that on amphibolite). The increased Cu sorption at fast sites in the amphibolite soil was due to its high content in Fe oxyhydroxides, which bound P and released OH(-) as a result, thereby raising the pH and leading to a higher sorption capacity during fast reactions. On the other hand, the increased Cu sorption at slow adsorption sites was due to Cu(2+) acting as a bridging element between P and organic matter.

Sorption of penconazole applied as a commercial water-oil emulsion in soils devoted to vineyards

The objective of this work was to assess the effect of surfactants and oils of a commercial formulation on the potential mobility of penconazole in agricultural soils that have been subjected to a high rate of application of agricultural chemicals. Soil-water partition tests on a commercial water-oil emulsion formulation of penconazole (WOEP) in 0.01 M CaCl(2) containing 35 mg L(-1) penconazole, incubated for 24 h, showed a maximum retention of approximately 250-300 mg penconazole kg(-1) soil. Approximately 70% of the total penconazole retained by the solid phase was sorbed on the soil (175-200 mg kg(-1)). The other 30% was retained by the adjuvants present in the commercial formulation. The formulation also influenced the water-soil partition, increasing the sorption in tests on batch studies using technical-grade penconazole (TGP). Soils with high total copper and organic matter had the greatest affinity for penconazole when added as WOEP. Additionally, adsorption of penconazole followed an S-type isotherm, whose behavior was consistent with the ability of the technical-grade penconazole to form aggregates. In the case of the WOEP, the S-type behavior could be attributed to the surfactant present in the formulation, which could be adsorbed onto soil as hemimicelles, which in turn may facilitate adsorption of penconazole.

Behaviour of metalaxyl as copper oxychloride-metalaxyl commercial formulation vs. technical grade-metalaxyl in vineyards-devoted soils

The objective of this work is to asses the sorption of metalaxyl applied as a copper oxychloride (CO)-metalaxyl formulation, for a set of selected soils devoted to vineyards. The method involved batch incubation of soils suspended with a commercial copper oxychloride-metalaxyl-based fungicide in 0.01M CaCl(2). Afterwards, the metalaxyl concentration remaining in solution was determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The amount of dissolved metalaxyl in the fungicide suspension depends mainly on the soil pH, its potential acidity, and the cation exchange capacity. Of the approx. 20% metalaxyl retained by the solid colloids, the effect of organic matter colloids in soils (15-20 mg kg(-1)) had a poor contribution (six times lower) than the copper oxychloride colloids (40%, w/w) in the commercial fungicide formulation (100-130 mg kg(-1)). When comparing these retention data with the behaviour of metalaxyl used as a technical grade fungicide of about 100% purity (10-15 mg kg(-1) in solids), it is clear that the commercial formulation increases a 30% retention of metalaxyl by soil (15-20 mg kg(-1) in solids). The overall effect of the metalaxyl formulation plus soil show values of 10 times higher retention than technical grade-metalaxyl plus soil. Commercial formulation can decrease the mobility of soluble metalaxyl in agricultural soils with regard to the expected values obtained from batch studies using analytical grade-metalaxyl. Therefore, the effect of surfactants should be considered in the assessment of water contamination by the pesticides used in agriculture.