TITLE:
Quantitation of Pesticide Residue in Water and Food in Louisiana, USA
AUTHORS:
Olubode Adeniyi, Amy Hernandez, Mark LeBlanc, Joan King, Marlene Janes
KEYWORDS:
Gas Chromatography, Mass Spectrometry, QuEChERS, Cypermethrin, Atrazine, Pesticide, FDA
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Water Resource and Protection,
Vol.8 No.12,
November
7,
2016
ABSTRACT: Pesticides
can remain in the environment for decades and contaminate surface water that is
used for irrigation of produce. This study examined pesticide residues in some
surface waters and foods in Louisiana. Samples of 8 foods (tomato, corn, rice,
blueberry, cucumber, cabbage, wheat and melon) and 35 surface waters were
studied using a QuEChERS extraction method for food samples and liquid-liquid
extraction method for the water samples. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry
was used to analyze water and food samples. Nine pesticides were detected in
the surface water samples and 5 in the food samples. Pesticides detected in
foods were below FDA tolerance limit but 0.18 ppm cypermethrin found in tomato
was within 90% of the FDA limit (0.2 ppm). Four water samples had atrazine
levels that were above the FDA limit for potable water. This study suggests the
need to intermittently monitor pesticide contamination in our food and water.