# The Effects of Modern Industrial Pesticides in African Agriculture
Composed By: Francois Boois (opens new window)@Facebook
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Pesticides are becoming increasingly popular on the African continent especially in dry arid countries like Namibia since the outcry of global warming in the 2000's,and have affected the quality of the crops produced and livelihood of Natives in unaccountable ways. The outcry following the publication of the 1962 book Silent Spring — which documented the detrimental environmental effects of overuse of pesticides — resulted in DDT being banned in most of the western nations and created an awareness of how pesticides can impact the wider environment.
Pesticides that are sprayed on crops leave a residue on the dead plant material that settles into the soil and can run off into waterways or leach into groundwater. A 2014 study performing tests across 38 states in the U.S found glyphosate in the majority of rivers, streams, ditches and wastewater treatment plants, as well as in 70 percent of rainfall samples.
# 1.Even at levels deemed safe, pesticides have been shown to cause a loss of biodiversity, including reduced numbers of beneficial insects, as well as birds and amphibians.
# 2.The EPA maintains of the potential effects of pesticides on aquatic life and other animals as a reference for researchers investigating water quality.
# 3.Some pesticides, such as atrazine, may not usually be present in quantities to kill wildlife outright, but they can still disrupt breeding and cause serious damage to aquatic foodwebs.
# Atrazine
A widely used herbicide on corn and other crops. Atrazine is especially prone to running off targeted plants and ending up in rivers, lakes and groundwater, where it can harm aquatic plants and disrupt the reproduction and growth of amphibians and fish.
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