Pesticides | Umweltbundesamt

Plant protection products and biocides are discharged into rivers and streams primarily via diffuse sources (such as leaching from agricultural land, leaching from house-painting).

Inputs of plant protection products and biocides into rivers and streams occur primarily from diffuse sources (e.g. discharges from agricultural land, leaching from building paints).

29 of the 61 pesticides regulated by the German Surface Water Ordinance which are used in plant protection agents and biocides complied with the environmental quality standards for the period 2016-2018 at the monitoring sites of the German Working Group on water issues of the Laender and the Federal Government (LAWA ).

For a further 11 substances a check for compliance with environmental quality standards is not always possible since the limit of quantification is higher than the environmental quality standards . The following substances showed exceedences of the environmental quality standard: Imidacloprid, Nicosulfuron, Cypermethrin, Flufenacet, Bifenox, Mecoprop,  Diflufenican, Dichlorvos, Metolachlor, Bentazon, Terbutryn, Triclosan, 2,4-D, Chlortoluron, Cybutryn, Dichlorprop, Dimethoat, Diuron, Fenpropimorph, Omethoat and pyrazone (chloridazone) (in descending order of the number of monitoring sites where levels were exceeded).