Pesticides
Pesticides (organic or synthetic) are deliberately added to our environment to combat harmful organisms. They are widely used in agriculture including arable farming and horticulture.
Pesticides occur in a variety states in the environment. Due to their persistent and bio-accumulative properties they are found worldwide in soil, water, air and in organisms throughout the food chain. Concentrations accumulate higher up the food chain.
A number of pesticides have been included in diverse regulations, such as the international environmental treaty and priority substances list in the European Water Framework Directive. In Europe an environmental threshold of 0.1 μg/l applies to all pesticides.
