Past, present and future of pesticides

More than 50 years have elapsed since synthetic organic pesticides were int roduced on a large scale for controlling agricultural pests and disease vec tors. During the period in which pesticide use has become widespread, resea rch has contributed to a better understanding of its implications. Unfortun ately, some of this knowledge was gained rather late. Although chemical kno wledge was important, it was realized that the simplistic approaches to pes t control neglected many factors, particularly the environmental implicatio ns. Mandated safety tests revealed some of the potential for adverse effects. C onsequently, it became necessary to reevaluate approaches to the design of pesticide molecules on the basis of accumulated information about the behav ior and effects of pesticides in the environment. Such knowledge changed no t only public policy concerning existing xenobiotics, but also attitudes to wards the acceptability of new molecules. It became dear that the risks and benefits of pesticide use must be evaluated continuously. Regulations have attempted to match the pace of scientific progress, but re gulators face extreme difficulty in attempting to prescribe and agree on ad equate test protocols for measuring environmental concentrations and long-t erm low level effects of chemicals on nontarget organisms and ecological co mmunities. Thus, researchers must adopt new and unconventional approaches t o prolong the useful lifetime of existing products or devise new nonpolluti ng strategies because of the increasing costs of developing new compounds. Disciplinary approaches to the control of pests are being broadened and the biological sciences and biotechnology play an increasingly important role. Effective pest control systems must be based on combinations of scientific disciplines, their proper coordination and interactions with an increasing number of stakeholders.