Modern Agrochemicals Influence Bioaccumulation of Incurred DDT Soil Residues in Pumpkins – Residue Risk or a Chance for Phytoremediation?

Although banned more than 50 years ago, residues of first generation organochlorine pesticide residues, such as DDT are still found in agricultural soils all over the world. Phytoremediation is a potential remediation strategy, using plants to remove these residues from the soils. One limiting factor is the low mobility and bioavailability of lipophilic compounds for plants. Soil mobility can be significantly increased by the application of surfactants to the soils. Agrochemicals, in particular crop protection formulations commonly contain major amounts of surfactants as adjuvants, a fact which so far has not been considered an influencing factor for the mobilization of organochlorine contaminants such as DDT. This study evaluated the influence of commonly applied agrochemical products on the bioavailability of DDT and its metabolites in pumpkins in an open-field trial. To compare different typically used products, organic farming pesticides were compared against conventional formulations.