Pesticides: Problems, Improvements, Alternatives

by Editor: Frank Den Hond (Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands); Editor: Peter Groenewegen (Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands); Editor: Nico van Straalen

• ISBN13: 9780470995440
• ISBN10: 0470995440
• Format: eBook
• Copyright: 2008-04-01
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

How sustainable are current pest management practices that rely heavily on the use of pesticide products? This important book looks in depth at the question of why the environmental impact of pesticides continues to be of serious concern (the persistence of the pesticide problem) as well as identifying and critically assessing various improvements and alternative strategies to circumvent the current problems of agricultural pesticide use.Contents of this thought-provoking book include details of the authorisation of pesticides and regulatory science, innovation in the agrochemical industry, the use of agrochemicals by farmers, variations in agricultural practice, the effect of pesticides on the environment, integrated assessment, site-specific pest management, the use of biotechnology, food industry initiatives, international policies and organic farming.The editors have drawn together an impressive list of contributing authors in a well integrated and carefully edited book that is an essential purchase for anyone working in the areas of crop protection and agrochemicals, in academia, research, policy making, government or industry. Agricultural scientists, applied entomologists, biochemists, crop protection specialists and environmental scientists will find a huge wealth of important information within the covers of this book. Libraries in universities where agricultural sciences, crop protection, plant sciences, biological and environmental sciences are studied and taught should have copies of this book on their shelves.Frank den Hond and Peter Groenewegen are at the Faculty of Social and Cultural Sciences, and Nico van Straalen is at the Faculty of Earth and Life Sciences, all of the Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

Table of Contents

Contributors' biographical notes. Acknowledgements. List of reviewers. Preface. Chapter 1: Questions around the persistence of the pesticide problem. Chapter 2: An agricultural vision. Chapter 3: The authorisation of pesticides in the light of sustainability. Chapter 4: Innovation in the agrochemical industry. Chapter 5: Regulatory science in an international regime: An institutional analysis. Chapter 6: Farmers' agrochemical use decisions and the potential of efficiency and innovation offsets. Chapter 7: Variations in agricultural practice and environmental care. Chapter 8: Assessing the environmental performance of agriculture: Pesticide use, risk and management indicators. Chapter 9: integrated assessment of pesticides: Methods for predicting and detecting environmental risks in a safety net. Chapter 10: Site-specific pest management. Chapter 11: New Biotechnology, crop protection and sustainable development. Chapter 12: European food industry initiatives reducing pesticide use. Chapter 13: Impact of International Policies (CAP) and Agreements (WTO) on the development of organic farming. Chapter 14: Integration: Learning to solve the problem. Index