Pesticides were observed frequently in water, sediment, and the tissue of resident aquatic organisms from an agriculturally dominated estuary along the central California coast according to a collaborative study by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and University of California, Davis scientists published in Marine Pollution Bulletin.
The estuary and lagoon, near Guadalupe, provide nursery and foraging habitat for numerous marine and estuarine fish and other aquatic animals including the endangered tidewater goby fish. Three fungicides, an herbicide, and two organophosphate insecticides were observed frequently in the study area. Pesticides found in the water increased during the summer months as pesticide application increased in the adjacent agricultural watershed; pesticides in bed sediment decreased with increasing distance from potential sources. Fish and sand crabs collected from the mouth of the estuary accumulated a number of pesticides in their tissues. This is the first study to document the occurrence of many current-use pesticides, including fungicides, in tissue. Limited information is alsoavailable documenting the accumulation and effects of pesticides on aquatic organisms, especially in small, agriculturally dominated estuaries.
In estuaries receiving runoff from agricultural areas, management practices are being implemented by State and local agencies to reduce the load of pesticides to estuaries. This study provides a baseline that will allow resource managers to track changes in ecosystem performance with changes in pesticide contamination levels. The approach developed in this study will help resource managers and scientists assess the health of coastal environments.
The California State Water Resources Control Board, USGS Cooperative Water Program, and USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program provided the funding for this work.
References
Anderson, B., Phillips, B., Hunt, J., Siegler, K., Voorhees, J., Smalling, K., Kuivila, K., and Adams, M., 2010, Watershed-scale evaluation of agricultural BMP effectiveness in protecting critical coastal habitats--Final report on the status of three coastal estuaries: Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Louis Obispo, Calif., 117 p.
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Occurrence of pesticides in surface water and sediments from three central California coastal watersheds, 2008-2009
- Overview
Pesticides were observed frequently in water, sediment, and the tissue of resident aquatic organisms from an agriculturally dominated estuary along the central California coast according to a collaborative study by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and University of California, Davis scientists published in Marine Pollution Bulletin.
USGS scientist dissecting a summer flounder. Photo Credit: James Orlando, USGS. The estuary and lagoon, near Guadalupe, provide nursery and foraging habitat for numerous marine and estuarine fish and other aquatic animals including the endangered tidewater goby fish. Three fungicides, an herbicide, and two organophosphate insecticides were observed frequently in the study area. Pesticides found in the water increased during the summer months as pesticide application increased in the adjacent agricultural watershed; pesticides in bed sediment decreased with increasing distance from potential sources. Fish and sand crabs collected from the mouth of the estuary accumulated a number of pesticides in their tissues. This is the first study to document the occurrence of many current-use pesticides, including fungicides, in tissue. Limited information is alsoavailable documenting the accumulation and effects of pesticides on aquatic organisms, especially in small, agriculturally dominated estuaries.
In estuaries receiving runoff from agricultural areas, management practices are being implemented by State and local agencies to reduce the load of pesticides to estuaries. This study provides a baseline that will allow resource managers to track changes in ecosystem performance with changes in pesticide contamination levels. The approach developed in this study will help resource managers and scientists assess the health of coastal environments.
The California State Water Resources Control Board, USGS Cooperative Water Program, and USGS Toxic Substances Hydrology Program provided the funding for this work.
References
Anderson, B., Phillips, B., Hunt, J., Siegler, K., Voorhees, J., Smalling, K., Kuivila, K., and Adams, M., 2010, Watershed-scale evaluation of agricultural BMP effectiveness in protecting critical coastal habitats--Final report on the status of three coastal estuaries: Central Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, San Louis Obispo, Calif., 117 p.
- Science
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Scientists Start at the Base of the Food Chain to Understand Contaminant Affects on Energy Cycling in Streams
Study examines the potential adverse effects of fungicides on leaf decomposition by microbes and aquatic invertebrates.Native Bees are Exposed to Neonicotinoids and Other Pesticides
A recent reconnaissance study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) demonstrates the first observed occurrence of pesticides, including neonicotinoid insecticides, in wild-caught native bees. The results indicate that native bees collected in an agricultural landscape are exposed to multiple pesticides including insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides. This reconnaissance study is the first step...First National-Scale Reconnaissance of Neonicotinoid Insecticides in United States Streams
Neonicotinoid insecticides (neonicotinoids) were present in a little more than half of the streams sampled across the United States and Puerto Rico, according to a new U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study. This is the first national-scale study of the presence of neonicotinoids in urban and agricultural land use settings across the Nation and was completed as part of ongoing USGS investigations of...Neonicotinoid Insecticides Documented in Midwestern U.S. Streams
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Amphibians from remote locations in California have accumulated several current-use pesticides, including fungicides, in their bodies. A team of U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists recently reported on field results in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry. Two fungicides, pyraclostrobin and tebuconazole, and the herbicide simazine were detected frequently in amphibians from all...Contaminants Affect Fish and Wildlife in the Chesapeake Bay
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U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) scientists have detected one or more fungicides in 20 of 29 streams across the United States that were sampled during 2005 and 2006 in areas where soybeans are grown. The number of fungicides used has increased significantly since 2002, and very little is known about their occurrence in the environment. For some of the fungicides this is the first data documenting...Glyphosate Herbicide Found in Many Midwestern Streams, Antibiotics Not Common
Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) recently investigated 51 streams in nine Midwestern States to determine the presence of a wide range of herbicides, their degradation byproducts and antibiotics. Herbicides were detected in most water samples, which were collected to coincide with runoff events following herbicide application, but antibiotics were detected in only 1 percent of the... - Publications
Related publications listed below.
Environmental fate of fungicides and other current-use pesticides in a central California estuary
The current study documents the fate of current-use pesticides in an agriculturally-dominated central California coastal estuary by focusing on the occurrence in water, sediment and tissue of resident aquatic organisms. Three fungicides (azoxystrobin, boscalid, and pyraclostrobin), one herbicide (propyzamide) and two organophosphate insecticides (chlorpyrifos and diazinon) were detected frequentlyAuthorsKelly L. Smalling, Kathryn Kuivila, James L. Orlando, Bryn M. Phillips, Brian S. Anderson, Katie Siegler, John W. Hunt, Mary HamiltonOccurrence of pesticides in surface water and sediments from three central California coastal watersheds, 2008-2009
Water and sediment (bed and suspended) were collected from January 2008 through October 2009 from 12 sites in 3 of the largest watersheds along California's Central Coast (Pajaro, Salinas, and Santa Maria Rivers) and analyzed for a suite of pesticides by the U.S. Geological Survey. Water samples were collected in each watershed from the estuaries and major tributaries during 4 storm events and 11AuthorsKelly L. Smalling, James L. Orlando