Environmental impact of the use of pesticides in the basin of the Luduena stream (Santa Fe, Argentina)

The objective of this study was to analyze through a methodology based on the calculation of coefficients of environmental impact, the impacts produced by the application of pesticides in production systems in the south of Santa Fe, Argentina. The work was carried out in the basin of Luduena stream. Information on the type and proportion of crop/pasture and annual pesticide management was collected from ten agricultural production systems -four with soybean monoculture and rotation, and six mixed systems with breeding and finishing cattle and dairy production. The environmental impact coefficient was calculated by use and production system. In the first soybean crop, more pesticides were applied (+1,8 on average), glyphosate and cypermethrin being the most widely used in general (33,8%; 17,8%). The greatest negative impacts were obtained with the inclusion of maize and sorghum rotations (110,0; 109,10). The two mixed farming systems had the lowest negative impact on the environment (31,82; 36,38). The environment component was most affected in relation to human consumer and rural workers, and increasing the scale of work increased coefficients. The environmental impact coefficient of pesticides is useful to assess its impact on different production systems, and on the primary food resources obtained in rural basins.