Monitoring of the surface and stratum waters of the rice-growing area of northwest Italy

The Agricultural chemicals used in agriculture require attention in the for m of monitoring to insure that they will not have a permanent impact on the environment. In this study, the movement of herbicides used in rice growin g was monitored in the irrigation waters, surface-drainage waters and groun dwater. The study area is a wide part of the Vercellese area that has alway s been used for the cultivation of rice. Estimates of the hydrological bala nce in the boundary area, during the cultivation cycle, were made to evalua te the rate of flow of the substances monitored. The quality of the water h as been monitored systematically sampling along the irrigation network and the drainage network.