Towards a landscape scale management of pesticides: ERA using changes in modelled occupancy and abundance to assess long-term population impacts of pesticides
Pesticides are regulated in Europe and this process includes an environmental risk assessment (ERA) for non-target arthropods such as beetles. Traditionally a non-spatial or field trial assessment is used. In this study we exemplify the introduction of a landscape scale approach to the environmental risk assessment of pesticides.
We used an agent-based simulation system and an existing model for a widespread carabid beetle, to evaluate the impact of a fictitious highly-toxic pesticide on population density and the distribution of beetles in time and space. Effects of landscape structure and field margin management were evaluated by comparing different scenarios.
Results indicate an off-crop impact of pesticide use even when no pesticide was present off-crop. In addition, impacts increased with multi-year application of the pesticide whereas current environmental risk assessment considers maximally one year.
Results further demonstrate that there is a potential to change from regulation of a pesticide in isolation, towards the consideration of pesticide management at landscape scales and provision of biodiversity benefits via inclusion and testing of mitigation measures in authorisation procedures.
Authors
Specifications
- Publication title
- Towards a landscape scale management of pesticides: ERA using changes in modelled occupancy and abundance to assess long-term population impacts of pesticides
- Publication date
- 28 August 2015
- Publication type
- Publicatie
- Magazine
- Science of The Total Environment, Vol 537, 15 december 2015, pages 159-169
- Product number
- 1903