Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina

Agricultural use of pesticides continues to rise globally. Argentina ranks fifth in use. While pesticides help yields, they also pose risks to human health and the environment. Indoor dust can present high pesticide concentrations, raising concerns about chronic exposure in non-farming households. S...

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Autores principales: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina, Kaseker, Jessica, Scheepers, Paul, Alaoui, Abdallah, Figueiredo, Daniel, Mol, Hans, Silva, Vera, Harkes, Paula, Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo, Geissen, Violette, Costa, Jose Luis
Formato: Artículo
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: Elsevier 2025
Materias:
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/21999
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749125005810
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126208
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author Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Kaseker, Jessica
Scheepers, Paul
Alaoui, Abdallah
Figueiredo, Daniel
Mol, Hans
Silva, Vera
Harkes, Paula
Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo
Geissen, Violette
Costa, Jose Luis
author_browse Alaoui, Abdallah
Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Costa, Jose Luis
Figueiredo, Daniel
Geissen, Violette
Harkes, Paula
Kaseker, Jessica
Mol, Hans
Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo
Scheepers, Paul
Silva, Vera
author_facet Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Kaseker, Jessica
Scheepers, Paul
Alaoui, Abdallah
Figueiredo, Daniel
Mol, Hans
Silva, Vera
Harkes, Paula
Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo
Geissen, Violette
Costa, Jose Luis
author_sort Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
collection INTA Digital
description Agricultural use of pesticides continues to rise globally. Argentina ranks fifth in use. While pesticides help yields, they also pose risks to human health and the environment. Indoor dust can present high pesticide concentrations, raising concerns about chronic exposure in non-farming households. Studies of pesticides in indoor dust are few worldwide. This pioneering study aimed to identify and/or quantify for the first time pesticide occurrence in indoor dust from urban residences in the Pampas Region, southeast of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Pesticide residues in indoor dust from 48 non-agricultural homes in the Pampas plain region were analysed. Study participants completed questionnaires on household demographics, pet ownership, pesticide use, gardening, and habits like leaving shoes outside. We detected 41 out of 49 targeted pesticides, including metabolites and banned compounds. Seven of the 49 tested are dual-use compounds (i.e. pesticide & biocide or veterinary applications). The synergist piperonyl butoxide, the dual-use imidacloprid, and “agricultural only” pesticides carbaryl, glyphosate, and atrazine were detected in all dust samples. Glyphosate, 2,4-D, atrazine, imidacloprid, carbaryl, tetramethrin, and piperonyl butoxide had maximum concentrations exceeding 1, 000 μg kg−1. Complex mixtures of up to 32 residues were found per sample. Questionnaire responses revealed that most participants brought shoes inside (60 %), almost all had pets (93 %), and 51 % had used flea repellents (mainly imidacloprid and fipronil). Approximately 48 % reported pesticide use in the past year, and 19 % reported exposure via their (non-farmer) jobs, e.g., via disinfection and weeding. These findings highlight the prevalence of pesticide residues in residential settings and the need for further research on long-term exposure and risks. Improved tracking of agricultural, household, and mixed-use pesticide applications is crucial, particularly in regions heavily reliant on agriculture.
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institution Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA -Argentina)
language Inglés
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spelling INTA219992025-04-23T10:18:32Z Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina Aparicio, Virginia Carolina Kaseker, Jessica Scheepers, Paul Alaoui, Abdallah Figueiredo, Daniel Mol, Hans Silva, Vera Harkes, Paula Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo Geissen, Violette Costa, Jose Luis Herbicidas Insecticidas Fungicidas Polvo (contaminante) Contaminación Peligro para la Salud Argentina Herbicides Insecticides Fungicides Dust Contamination Health Hazards Agricultural use of pesticides continues to rise globally. Argentina ranks fifth in use. While pesticides help yields, they also pose risks to human health and the environment. Indoor dust can present high pesticide concentrations, raising concerns about chronic exposure in non-farming households. Studies of pesticides in indoor dust are few worldwide. This pioneering study aimed to identify and/or quantify for the first time pesticide occurrence in indoor dust from urban residences in the Pampas Region, southeast of Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. Pesticide residues in indoor dust from 48 non-agricultural homes in the Pampas plain region were analysed. Study participants completed questionnaires on household demographics, pet ownership, pesticide use, gardening, and habits like leaving shoes outside. We detected 41 out of 49 targeted pesticides, including metabolites and banned compounds. Seven of the 49 tested are dual-use compounds (i.e. pesticide & biocide or veterinary applications). The synergist piperonyl butoxide, the dual-use imidacloprid, and “agricultural only” pesticides carbaryl, glyphosate, and atrazine were detected in all dust samples. Glyphosate, 2,4-D, atrazine, imidacloprid, carbaryl, tetramethrin, and piperonyl butoxide had maximum concentrations exceeding 1, 000 μg kg−1. Complex mixtures of up to 32 residues were found per sample. Questionnaire responses revealed that most participants brought shoes inside (60 %), almost all had pets (93 %), and 51 % had used flea repellents (mainly imidacloprid and fipronil). Approximately 48 % reported pesticide use in the past year, and 19 % reported exposure via their (non-farmer) jobs, e.g., via disinfection and weeding. These findings highlight the prevalence of pesticide residues in residential settings and the need for further research on long-term exposure and risks. Improved tracking of agricultural, household, and mixed-use pesticide applications is crucial, particularly in regions heavily reliant on agriculture. EEA Balcarce Fil: Aparicio, Virginia Carolina. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina Fil: Kaseker, Jessica. Federal University of Santa Maria. Soils Department; Brasil Fil: Scheepers, Paul. Radboud University. Radboud Institute for Biological and Environmental Sciences; Países Bajos Fil: Alaoui, Abdallah. University of Bern. Institute of Geography; Suiza Fil: Figueiredo, Daniel M. Utrecht University. Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Population Health Sciences; Países Bajos Fil: Mol, Hans. Wageningen Food Safety Research – part of Wageningen University & Research; Países Bajos Fil: Silva, Vera. Soil Physics and Land Management Group, Wageningen University & Research; Países Bajos Fil: Harkes, Paula. Soil Physics and Land Management Group, Wageningen University & Research; Países Bajos Fil: Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo. Federal University of Santa Maria. Soils Department; Brasil Fil: Geissen, Violette. Wageningen University & Research. Soil Physics and Land Management Group; Países Bajos Fil: Costa, José Luis. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina 2025-04-23T10:13:19Z 2025-04-23T10:13:19Z 2025-05 info:ar-repo/semantics/artículo info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/21999 https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749125005810 0269-7491 (Print) 1873-6424(Online) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126208 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0) application/pdf Elsevier Environmental Pollution 373 : 126208 (May 2025)
spellingShingle Herbicidas
Insecticidas
Fungicidas
Polvo (contaminante)
Contaminación
Peligro para la Salud
Argentina
Herbicides
Insecticides
Fungicides
Dust
Contamination
Health Hazards
Aparicio, Virginia Carolina
Kaseker, Jessica
Scheepers, Paul
Alaoui, Abdallah
Figueiredo, Daniel
Mol, Hans
Silva, Vera
Harkes, Paula
Rheinheimer Dos Santos, Danilo
Geissen, Violette
Costa, Jose Luis
Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title_full Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title_fullStr Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title_full_unstemmed Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title_short Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina
title_sort pesticide contamination in indoor home dust a pilot study of non occupational exposure in argentina
topic Herbicidas
Insecticidas
Fungicidas
Polvo (contaminante)
Contaminación
Peligro para la Salud
Argentina
Herbicides
Insecticides
Fungicides
Dust
Contamination
Health Hazards
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12123/21999
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749125005810
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126208
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