Semi-field Methods for the Environmental Risk Assessment of Pesticides in Soil

Based on discussions at the 2007 SETAC Europe PERAS Workshop in Coimbra, Semi-Field Methods for the Environmental Risk Assessment of Pesticides in Soil presents a timely summary of state-of-the-art higher-tier terrestrial risk assessment of plant protection products (PPPs). Influential regulators, academics, and industry scientists provide a comprehensive, science-based view to guide regulatory authorities and manufacturers in assessing the higher-tier terrestrial risks of PPPs in the environment.

The book includes a clear description of how to perform a higher-tier terrestrial risk assessment and provides a single reference on the subject. It examines various types of semi-field methods for soil assessment, including the use of terrestrial model ecosystems for pesticide risk assessment. In addition, the text also explores legislative and regulatory issues and offers technical recommendations. The book provides guidance on how to assess the soil risks of pesticides in the environment and explains how to use semi-field methods to access how pesticides may lead to spatial and temporal changes in soil biological communities and the larger agricultural landscape.

Andreas Schaffer is a Professor of Environmental Biology and Chemodynamics at RWTH Aachen University. Fred Heimbach is a Consultant Scientist at RIFCon GmbH in Leichlingen, Germany. Paul J. Van den Brink works at the research institute Alterra and the Aquatic Ecology and Water Quality Management Group of Wageningen University.