Periodic Reporting for period 2 - SPRINT (SUSTAINABLE PLANT PROTECTION TRANSITION: A GLOBAL HEALTH APPROACH)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2022-03-01 al 2023-08-31
Current farming systems rely on the use of Plant Protection Products (PPP) to secure high productivity and control threats to the quality of the crops. However, PPP use may have considerable impacts on human health and the environment. SPRINT will develop and validate a Global Health Risk Assessment Toolbox to integrate assessments of the impacts of PPPs on ecosystem, plant, animal and human (EPAH) health. The main goal is to use integrated risk assessments at the local, regional, national and European levels to map PPP impacts on EPAH health. We will focus on different PPP use patterns and detected residue mixtures in contrasting conventional/integrated and organic farming systems. Transition pathways towards the sustainable use of pesticides will be identified in a multi-actor approach with a focus on the following objectives:
1. Engage with local, regional, national, and international stakeholders to identify knowledge needs and improve awareness of and trust in integrated pesticide risk assessments.
2. Assess PPP component mixtures and their distribution in EPAH and related health states in conventional/integrated and organic farming systems.
3. Estimate direct and indirect routes of PPP exposure levels in representative case study sites (CSS).
4. Develop laboratory tests for determining PPP mixture effects.
5. Develop a Global Health Risk Assessment Toolbox for risk and impact assessment of PPP mixtures, linking exposure to health impacts.
6. Assess integrated risks, costs and benefits of PPP use in different farming systems at micro and macroeconomic levels.
7. Propose transition pathways towards sustainable plant protection, provide policy recommendations, and develop a research agenda
1. Engage with local, regional, national, and international stakeholders to identify knowledge needs and improve awareness of and trust in integrated pesticide risk assessments.
2. Assess PPP component mixtures and their distribution in EPAH and related health states in conventional/integrated and organic farming systems.
3. Estimate direct and indirect routes of PPP exposure levels in representative case study sites (CSS).
4. Develop laboratory tests for determining PPP mixture effects.
5. Develop a Global Health Risk Assessment Toolbox for risk and impact assessment of PPP mixtures, linking exposure to health impacts.
6. Assess integrated risks, costs and benefits of PPP use in different farming systems at micro and macroeconomic levels.
7. Propose transition pathways towards sustainable plant protection, provide policy recommendations, and develop a research agenda
The SPRINT project is progressing as planned to achieve the overall aim of developing a global health risk assessment toolbox. This will result in an assessment of the impact of the use of plant protection products (PPP) on ecosystem, plant, animal and human (EPAH) health.
A field sampling campaign was completed in 10 EU countries and Argentina. Information on the use of PPPs was collected from conventional and organic farm practices. Volunteer farmers, their neighbors, and consumers participated in a human biomonitoring survey with an additional collection of indoor dust samples and wristbands to be analysed for more than 200 PPPs. All participants completed questionnaires and the farmers gave information on their farm practices to support the interpretation of the measurement data. Additional environmental samples were collected (soil, sediment, water, outdoor dust/air, crops, bat faeces, earthworm and fish) at both conventional and organic farms. Most analyses were completed, and findings were discussed with the participants. Additionally, a small study was conducted in seven countries to assess the contribution of PPP uptake from the diet. Field data were combined with existing data to understand the occurrence of PPP in the homes and outdoor environments. Real-life exposures to mixtures of PPPs in body fluids, in homes and in environmental samples informed the occurrence of PPPs that can be used for the assessment of exposure. To understand the relationships between exposure and effects, ecotoxicological studies were conducted with terrestrial and aquatic organisms with a selection of relevant and sensitive non-target species. For human health toxicity, in vitro tests were done in a laboratory setting and are to be continued for selected PPPs. Chicken health experiments have been conducted with glyphosate exposure. Results from PPP occurrence, exposure and their health impacts will be used for modelling of the overall impact of the use of PPP applications in conventional and organic farm systems. We will attempt to use the results obtained in the 10 studied EU countries to predict the impact of conventional and organic farming practices on EPAH health. Preliminary results were presented at the UN Science Summit at UNGA78.
A field sampling campaign was completed in 10 EU countries and Argentina. Information on the use of PPPs was collected from conventional and organic farm practices. Volunteer farmers, their neighbors, and consumers participated in a human biomonitoring survey with an additional collection of indoor dust samples and wristbands to be analysed for more than 200 PPPs. All participants completed questionnaires and the farmers gave information on their farm practices to support the interpretation of the measurement data. Additional environmental samples were collected (soil, sediment, water, outdoor dust/air, crops, bat faeces, earthworm and fish) at both conventional and organic farms. Most analyses were completed, and findings were discussed with the participants. Additionally, a small study was conducted in seven countries to assess the contribution of PPP uptake from the diet. Field data were combined with existing data to understand the occurrence of PPP in the homes and outdoor environments. Real-life exposures to mixtures of PPPs in body fluids, in homes and in environmental samples informed the occurrence of PPPs that can be used for the assessment of exposure. To understand the relationships between exposure and effects, ecotoxicological studies were conducted with terrestrial and aquatic organisms with a selection of relevant and sensitive non-target species. For human health toxicity, in vitro tests were done in a laboratory setting and are to be continued for selected PPPs. Chicken health experiments have been conducted with glyphosate exposure. Results from PPP occurrence, exposure and their health impacts will be used for modelling of the overall impact of the use of PPP applications in conventional and organic farm systems. We will attempt to use the results obtained in the 10 studied EU countries to predict the impact of conventional and organic farming practices on EPAH health. Preliminary results were presented at the UN Science Summit at UNGA78.
The results of the field samples were used to support and evaluate computer model-generated estimates of the environmental fate of PPPs as well as human and livestock exposure. The monitoring and hazard information was used to develop a pesticide prioritization index, and to select mixtures to test risk to human and ecosystem. Existing and new essays are being used to determine PPP toxicities in innovative laboratory-based platforms which include testing sensitive ecological species and using mesocosms. Animal and human assessment involves limited in vivo testing (mice and rats), to verify suspected observations from in vitro tests. Results from this experimental work will support physiology-based kinetic (PBK) models that describe the uptake, distribution, metabolism and excretion of PPPs. These PBK models will improve the interpretation of the results from field samples concerning the source of the PPP exposure in humans and farm animals, e.g. dietary or non-dietary origin. These results will support predictions of expected impacts on health status concerning three main attributes: resilience,
reproduction/productivity and manifestation of diseases. With the Global Health Risk Assessment Toolbox, SPRINT is integrating the assessments of PPP impacts on EPAH health. The predictions are being upscaled according to certain sustainable transition scenarios on a European scale, specifying in each case the variability of known and unknown uncertainties. Our further modeling will help to assess and quantify the economic impact of the organic management system compared to the conventional management system concerning crop protection expenditures, return on crop protection expenditures, total labour input expenditures, and gross farm income. For each of the policy-relevant transition scenarios, the health impact and wider socio-economic implications will be predicted for farmers, neighbors and consumers, disaggregating by gender where possible. The predicted outcomes for conventional and organic farming systems will guide policy actions to encourage a transition to more sustainable agricultural practices regarding the use of PPPs.
reproduction/productivity and manifestation of diseases. With the Global Health Risk Assessment Toolbox, SPRINT is integrating the assessments of PPP impacts on EPAH health. The predictions are being upscaled according to certain sustainable transition scenarios on a European scale, specifying in each case the variability of known and unknown uncertainties. Our further modeling will help to assess and quantify the economic impact of the organic management system compared to the conventional management system concerning crop protection expenditures, return on crop protection expenditures, total labour input expenditures, and gross farm income. For each of the policy-relevant transition scenarios, the health impact and wider socio-economic implications will be predicted for farmers, neighbors and consumers, disaggregating by gender where possible. The predicted outcomes for conventional and organic farming systems will guide policy actions to encourage a transition to more sustainable agricultural practices regarding the use of PPPs.