D. Levanon et al., IMPACT OF TILLAGE ON MICROBIAL ACTIVITY AND THE FATE OF PESTICIDES INTHE UPPER SOIL, Water, air and soil pollution, 72(1-4), 1994, pp. 179-189
The impact of two tillage systems, plow tillage (PT) and no-tillage (N
T), on microbial activity and the fate of pesticides in the 0-5 cm soi
l layer were studied. The insecticides carbofuran and diazinon, and th
e herbicides atrazine and metolachlor were used in the study, which in
cluded the incubation and leaching of pesticides from untreated soils
and soils in which microorganisms had been inhibited. The mineralizati
on of ring C-14 labeled pesticides was studied. The study differentiat
ed between biotic and abiotic processes that determine the fate of pes
ticides in the soil. Higher leaching rates of pesticides from PT soils
are explaned by the relative importance of each of these processes. I
n NT soils, higher microbial populations and activity were associated
with higher mineralization rates of atrazine, diazinon and carbofuran.
Enhanced transformation rates played an important role in minimizing
the leaching of metolachlor and carbofuran from NT soils. The role of
abiotic adsorption/retention was important in minimizing the leaching
of metolachlor, carbofuran and atrazine from NT soils. The role of fun
gi and bacteria in the biodegradation process was studied by selective
inhibition techniques. Synergistic effects between fungi and bacteria
in the degradation of atrazine and diazinon were observed. Carbofuran
was also degraded in the soils where fungi were selectively inhibited
. Possible mechanisms for enhanced biodegradation and decreased mobili
ty of these pesticides in the upper layer of NT soils are discussed.