Residue Reviews : Residues of Pesticides and Other Contaminants in the Total Environment

That residues of pesticide and other contaminants in the total environment are of concern to everyone everywhere is attested by the reception accorded previous volumes of "Residue Reviews" and by the gratifying enthusiasm, sincerity, and efforts shown by all the in­ dividuals from whom manuscripts have been solicited. Despite much propaganda to the contrary, there can never be any serious question that pest-control chemicals and food-additive chemicals are essential to adequate food production, manufacture, marketing, and storage, yet without continuing surveillance and intelligent control some of those that persist in our foodstuffs could at times conceivably endanger the public health. Ensuring safety-in-use of these many chemicals is a dynamic challenge, for established ones are continually being dis­ placed by newly developed ones more acceptable to food tech­ nologists, pharmacologists, toxicologists, and changing pest-control requirements in progressive food-producing economies. These matters are of genuine concern to increasing numbers of governmental agencies and legislative bodies around the' wprld, for some of these chemicals have resulted in a few mishilps from improper use. Adequate safety-in-use evaluations of any of these chemicals per­ sisting into our foodstuHs are not simple matters, and they incorporate theconsidered judgments of many individuals highly trained in a variety of complex biological, chemical, food technological, medical, pharmacological, and toxicological disciplines. That residues of pesticide and other contaminants in the total environment are of concern to everyone everywhere is attested by the reception accorded previous volumes of "Residue Reviews" and by the gratifying enthusiasm, sincerity, and efforts shown by all the in­ dividuals from whom manuscripts have been solicited. Despite much propaganda to the contrary, there can never be any serious question that pest-control chemicals and food-additive chemicals are essential to adequate food production, manufacture, marketing, and storage, yet without continuing surveillance and intelligent control some of those that persist in our foodstuffs could at times conceivably endanger the public health. Ensuring safety-in-use of these many chemicals is a dynamic challenge, for established ones are continually being dis­ placed by newly developed ones more acceptable to food tech­ nologists, pharmacologists, toxicologists, and changing pest-control requirements in progressive. food-producing economies. These matters are of genuine concern to increasing numbers of governmental agencies and legislative bodies around the world, for some of these chemicals have resulted in a few mishaps from improper use. Adequate safety-in-use evaluations of any of these chemicals per­ sisting into our foodstuffs are not simple matters, and they incorporate the considered judgments of many individuals highly trained in a variety of complex biological, chemical, food technological, medical, pharmacological, and toxicological disciplines Front Matter....Pages i-vii Factors influencing soil adsorption and bioactivity of pesticides....Pages 1-54 The metabolism and degradation of vinyl phosphate insecticides....Pages 55-142 Microbial degradation of insecticides in flooded soil and in anaerobic cultures....Pages 143-165 The effects of herbicides on the ultrastructure of plant cells....Pages 167-189 Back Matter....Pages 191-200