Minimising the risk of pesticide runoff-What are the options?

Pressure on growers to be more environmentally responsible has seen the need for sound practical information on the behaviour and off-farm transport of applied pesticides. Growers are faced with options such as the type and timing of chemical applications, but the complex decision making required for managing the environmental risk needs consideration of other factors such as soil type, proximity to streams or groundwater and the size of the area to be treated. Canegrowers are well positioned to know how their individual property responds to large rainfall events, in terms of runoff, erosion and drainage. Environmental risk management is site specific and several practical choices are usually available provided that the key drivers of pesticide movement are known and considered. This paper outlines these key issues and provides a framework for a more systems-based approach to on-farm environmental management decision making. Results of recent research by the authors are also presented.