Organic Contaminants (Pesticides) Flashcards
(36 cards)
pest=
any organism that damages crops that are valuable to humans
weed=
any plant that competes with crops
(type of weed depends of type of crop)
T/F
categorization of organisms into categories “pest” or “weed” is subjective
true
eg. dandelion (they’re edible!), ladybug
pesticide=
a poison that targets pest organisms (usually a specific one)
herbicide=
a poison that kills weeds
insecticide=
a poison that kills insects
fungicides=
a poison that kills fungi
Here is a list of other pesticides. What would each of them kill?
1. acaricides
2. molluscicides
3. nematicides
4. rodenticides
5. avicides
6. piscicides
7. algicides
8. bactericides
- mites
- snails/ slugs
- nematodes
- rodents
- birds
- fish
- algae
- bacteria
Inorganic pesticides usually contain ___, ___, lead, or mercury and are highly ____ in terrestrial environments
arsenic, copper
persistent (and can be dispersed by wind/ water)
Give 2 examples of inorganic pesticides and explain
- what they’re made of
- what they’re used against
- Bordeaux Mixture
- copper sulfate mixture
- used as a fungicide for fruit and veggie crops - Paris Green
- copper and arsenic compound
- used as a rodenticide and insecticide
- was used in green paint, and was extremely toxic!
Give 3 examples of organic pesticides and explain them + provide an example
- Natural Organic Pesticides
- extracted from plants
- most are insecticides
- examples: nicotine, caffeine - Synthetic Organometallic Pesticides
- mostly used as fungicides
- example: methylmercury - Phenols
- fungicides, used as wood preservatives
- example: pentachlorophenol (persistent organic pollutant, banned in north america)
biological pesticides are a type of ____ ___ that uses other ____ to remove/ kill pests
biological control
organisms
what’s a benefit of using biological pesticides?
Give an example of it’s use
doesn’t usually harm non-targeted organisms
eg. bacteria used to kill beetles/ flies/ butterflies
the highest household pesticide use is in ___ provinces
prairie
The federal government sets usage guidelines and licenses pesticides for use by ____ farms
BUT does not track total usage by ____
commercial
industry
Give 5 examples of diseases that have been successfully controlled/ eliminated thanks to pesticide use
- malaria
- yellow fever
- west nile virus
- plague
- lyme disease
For diseases spread by vectors, what’s the most effective way to control the disease? Give an example
remove the vectors!
- most are spread by insects –> kill them with insecticides
- remove breeding grounds for the vector
eg. DDT used to kill mosquitos to decrease the spread of malaria
Modern agriculture is fairly dependent on pesticides production and profit, but even with pesticide use, North America loses __% of all food/ fiber crop production from pests
37%
T/F
An estimated 99% of all canola is treated with herbicides to reduce weeds, and there is no pressure to use safe products
false
99% is regularly treated
BUT
there is also lots of pressure to use “safe” products
What term does this define?
= genetically modified strains of crops that are resistant to ___, used to kill a wide range of weeds
Roundup Ready Crops
glyphosate
what’s the benefit of using roundup ready crops?
the crop doesn’t die when the field is sprayed, only the weeds do
what are 4 downsides of using roundup ready crops?
- non-target toxicity: spraying still affects other organisms, even if not our crops
- evolution of resistance by weeds (sometimes the crop & weed interbreed)
- economic monopoly on seeds by Monsanto
- roundup ready plant tissue may be toxic to surrounding organisms
glyphosate is known to kill crops- what’s a solution?
make the crops resistant to glyphosate!
Can still spray the weeds
this is what roundup ready is
pesticides often kill organisms other than their ____
Give 2 examples
targets
- carbofuran (now banned) and birds
- pesticides and honey bee colony collapse disorder
