Assessing the impact of rodenticides on the environment1

As with any pesticides, it is recommended that the environmental safety of a rodenticide is assessed in a stepwise manner, i. e. from basic laboratory studies on chemical behaviour and toxicology, through more detailed, specifically designed, studies of the compound's potential environmental hazard, to field experiments if they are shown to be necessary by the results of the lower tier studies. Following the release of the rodenticide onto the market, its environmental safety should be continually monitored through a formalized system for investigating any reports of wildlife death as a result of pesticides.