Assessment of insecticide risk to human health in groundwater in Northern China by using the China‐PEARL model

BACKGROUND Insecticides are extensively used in China and may leach to groundwater, which is used as a source of drinking water in Northern China. However, the risk of insecticide leaching to groundwater and the subsequent risk to human health caused by the consumption of insecticide‐contaminated drinking water remain unclear. RESULTS A total of 336 predicted environmental concentrations ( PECs ) were simulated for 32 commonly used insecticides, and 171 PECs were calculated for 20 metabolites in six agricultural dry‐land scenario locations of Northern China with eight target crops. In 264 of the 336 cases, the PEC in groundwater is ≤0.1 µg L −1 . Carbofuran, imidacloprid, trichlorfon and oxidative metabolites of aldicarb are the most leached chemicals in groundwater. The most vulnerable crop is cotton, whereas soil treatment is the most vulnerable application type. Urumqi and Weifang are the most vulnerable among the six scenario locations. Less than 3% of 336 cases show unacceptable risk of insecticide‐contaminated groundwater, thereby requiring higher risk assessment and risk mitigation. The unacceptable cases are the leaching of carbofuran for cotton growing in Urumqi and Weifang, and leaching of metabolites of aldicarb in cotton and tobacco scenarios. CONCLUSION Popular insecticides used in Northern China are generally safe to groundwater.