Pesticide Remediation/Removal
see also pesticide fact sheets/herbicide, neonicotinoids 2, insects/neonicotinoids
Scientists hopeful antidote can help protect bumblebees from pesticides Study suggests hydrogel microparticles increase survival by 30% in bumblebees exposed to lethal doses of neonicotinoids. (The Guardian, 12 September 2024) 'The researchers found that the microparticles physically bind to the neonicotinoids and once absorbed, the pesticides and microparticles pass through the bee’s digestive tract and are excreted, without causing the same harm. The antidote has the potential to be selectively applied to other pesticides. This treatment improved the bees’ motivation to feed and led to a 44% increase in the number of bees able to walk a route mapped by scientists. Bees become so unwell that they are unable to flap their wings when they are exposed to neonicotinoids but, using a high-speed camera, the researchers found that impaired wingbeat frequency after exposure improved significantly with the treatment' See also: Ingestible hydrogel microparticles improve bee health after pesticide exposure Nature Sustainability, 15 August 2024. SNAP Comment: How would one get the hydrogel into wild pollinators? What happens to it after it is excreted? It is still full of neonicotinoids and in the environment. Can't some other organism ingest it?
Coffee grounds might be the answer to agricultural contamination: Here’s how (by
By Harriet Reuter Hapgood, euronews.green , 25/03/2024) 'On a domestic level, try directing your cafetiere contents to your garden, not your bin: used coffee grounds are excellent as an addition to home compost bins and wormeries, a mulch for roses and a deterrent to snails. And on a global scale, science might have the answer. Scientists from Brazil’s Federal Technological University of Paraná found that leftover coffee can absorb bentazone, a herbicide frequently used in agriculture. When old coffee grounds are activated with zinc chloride, their carbon content becomes 70 per cent more efficient in removing the herbicide. The European Environment Agency has highlighted dangerous levels of bentazone in surface water, exceeding levels set in the Water Framework Directive and putting European Green Deal targets for pesticide use in jeopardy. The UK’s Environment Agency cites bentazone as having the potential to affect long-term water quality and lead to an increased need to treat the UK’s drinking water sources. The herbicide has been shown to impact human health if it is inhaled, ingested or absorbed through the skin.' SNAP Comment: Bentazone is widely used for a variety of crops including soybeans, alfalfa, beans, corn, peas, peppers, and sorghum. It is used in Europe and approved in the US, but not in Canada at present. As the test has only been done with bentazone, it is unknown at present whether this method would work for other herbicides or pesticides in general.
Baking Soda Washes Pesticides from Apples (By Janet Pelley, for C&EN, 15 NOv. 2017) 'The scientists compared the efficacy of the germicidal bleach to rinsing with tap water or a sodium bicarbonate solution, which is alkaline. “Most pesticides are not stable at an alkaline pH, which breaks down the compounds and helps to wash them away,” she explains.' The researchers applied two common pesticides, the fungicide thiabendazole and the insecticide phosmet, at concentrations used by farmers. 'Immersing the apples in a sodium bicarbonate solution for 15 minutes followed by a freshwater rinse removed all pesticide residues from the surface of the apples, whereas the tap water and bleach treatments removed some, but not all. Sodium bicarbonate degrades the pesticides, boosting the physical removal force of washing, He says.' However some residue had penetrated the peel and could not be removed.
Oregon Group Uses Mushrooms for Bioremediation (Beyond Pesticides, January 23, 2014) Using recycled burlap bags filled with used coffee grounds, straw, and yellow oyster mushroom spawn, the purpose of the unusual potpourri will be to harness the extremely effective filtering capabilities of mycelium. “Oyster mushrooms, for example, can digest the complex hydrocarbons in wood, so they can also be used to break down petroleum byproducts. Garden Giants use their mycelia to trap and eat bacteria, so they can filter E. coli from agricultural runoff.”
Chlorpyrifos residues: Although bombarding chlorpyrifos-contaminated containers with gamma radiation was "efficient for removing chlorpyrifos from the plastic packing," radioactive substances create their own environmental problems from both mining and disposal. Dilute chlorine bleach is a "perfectly viable alternative" effective to degrade chlorpyrifos residues. Zapping pesticides with radiation,(Susan Kegley, PANUPS Dec 6. 2007, scroll down)
Study Finds Plants Remove Golf Course Pesticides From Soil “We have identified plant species that can reduce the amount of certain pesticides in soil by up to 94 percent in the greenhouse.” Blue flag iris reduced chlorpyrifos by 76 percent and levels of chlorothalonil by 94 percent after three months of growth. 1 pants identified including the flag iris.(Beyond Pesticides, June 20, 2008)