Non-Persistent Pesticides
Non-Persistent Pesticides are compounds that break down quickly in the surroundings. Several different classes of pesticides make up this group.
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- Chlonisterase-inhibiting pesticides, which includes the organophospates and carbamates.
- Chlorinated Phenols
- Herbicides
- Pyethroids
- Fungicides
- Repellents
It became widely used after persistent organochlorine pesticides were banned from manufacture and use in the United States in the 1970’s. Non-persistent pesticides are less harmful to the environment because they do not build up they have to be applied more often to households and crops to be effective.
- Cholinesterase-inhibiting pesticides
Are a group of human-made chemicals that poison insects and mammals by damaging an enzyme in the body called acetylcholinesterase. These pesticides break down quickly and do not build up in the environment. Organophosphate
pesticides (such as diazinon) and carbamate pesticides (such as carbaryl) are the two major types
of cholinesterase-inhibiting pesticides.
Organophosphate pesticides are the most widely used insecticides available today.
Organophosphates are used in agriculture, the home, gardens, and veterinary practice. They all
have a common mechanism of toxicity and can cause similar symptoms in humans who have too
much exposure.
Carbamate pesticides are widely used in homes, gardens, and agriculture. Illnesses caused by
exposure to carbamate pesticides usually are shorter and easier to treat than illnesses caused by
exposure to organophosphate pesticides.
- Chlorinated phenols
Chlorophenols are a group of chemicals that are made up by adding chlorines to phenol. Phenol is a compound made from benzene. Some Chlorophenols are used as as pesticides. Others are used in antiseptics. Small amounts are produced when water is disinfected with chlorine. They are also produced in bleaching wood pulp with chlorine to make paper.
- Fungicides
Are widely used in industry, agriculture, and the home and garden.
- Herbicides
Herbicides are chemical agents intended to kill unwanted vegetation such as broadleaf weeds and
woody plants. They are used in agriculture and on residential properties.
- Pyrethroids
Pyrethroids are human-made insecticides that act in a similar way to pyrethrins, which are
derived from chrysanthemum flowers. Pyrethroids were developed to produce more
environmentally stable products. Pyrethroids are widely used for controlling insects in
agriculture and in homes and gardens, and to kill parasites such as fleas, lice, and ticks. This type
of pesticide quickly paralyzes insects; it is called a “knock down” agent.
- Repellents
A repellent is an agent that repels harmful pests such as mosquitoes, ticks, and mites.