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TRANSLOCATION AND REDISTRIBUTION OF PESTICIDES APPLIED IN THE RESIDENTIAL ENVIRONMENT
Citation:
Falconer, R L., R G. Lewis, C. R. Fortune, F. T. Blanchard, AND A. Y. Yau. TRANSLOCATION AND REDISTRIBUTION OF PESTICIDES APPLIED IN THE RESIDENTIAL ENVIRONMENT. Presented at Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Nashville, TN, November 12-16, 2000.
Impact/Purpose:
The goal of this task is to contribute to a better understanding of human exposure to pesticides, especially for small children by developing methods to characterize sources and pathways in and around the residential environment. We will support the science behind FQPA and assist the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) in the development of guidelines for the assessment of residential exposure to pesticides. Specific research objectives include: (i) to evaluate and develop methods for measuring pesticides in air using passive/diffusive samplers. Assess and refine devices for the collection of surface transferable pesticide residues and to establish transfer efficiencies; (ii) to develop and apply analytical methods for new and emerging pesticides using both gas and liquid chromatographic methods in support of the National Exposure Research Laboratory's (NERL) Human Exposure Measurement Project; and, (iii) to conduct pilot studies investigating chiral chromatographic methods.
Description:
Pesticides are introduced into the indoor environment for pest control by direct application (e.g., insect sprays and bombs). They are also applied outdoors on lawns, in gardens, or around house foundations to control weed and insect populations. Insecticides and herbicides applied outside the home can intrude into indoor living spaces by vapor penetration or spray drift and can be tracked inside by human and pets. Most pesticides applied indoors are semivolatile and vaporize from treated surfaces (e.g., carpets and baseboards). Both semi- and nonvolatile pesticides can be re-suspended into air on particles by human and pet activity. These pesticides tend to accumulate on indoor surfaces (particularly in carpet dust), in food, on dinnerware, and on children's toys where they may present exposure risks to humans, especially small children. In this study, we conducted multi-media residential monitoring to investigate the temporal and spatial distributions or pesticides applied by homeowners and commercial applicators following indoor crack and crevice and exterior perimeter treatments, including the first concurrent measurements on children's hands and toys. In participating households, pre- and post-application samples of indoor air at 10-cm and 75-cm above the floor (child's breathing zone), surface transferable and vacuum-dislodgeable floor residues, deposition on table tops and dinnerware, absorption by surrogate food, and residues on children's hands and toys were measured for pesticide residues. Enantiomeric analysis of several chiral pesticides was also done to determine chiral signatures. Results show the translocation of pesticides from the areas of application to surfaces accessible for human contact.
This work has been wholly or in part funded by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under contract 68-D5-0049 to ManTech Environmental Technology, Inc. It has been subjected to Agency review and approved for publication.