Pesticide
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A pesticide is a chemical that is used to kill or prevent animals (or organisms) which are considered to be unwanted. These organisms are called pests. Some of these pests that people do not want are insects, microbes that destroy plants, and other things that affect humans in a bad way and it may kill humans too.Many pesticides are poisonous, and are bad for not only the organisms it kills, but humans too.It also effects the environment and the atmosphere.
[change] Types of Pesticides
There are different types of pesticides for getting rid of different pests.
- Herbicides remove weeds
- Insecticides kill insects that eat plants and crops
- Fungicides kill any bad fungi
[change] Effects of Pesticides
Pesticides are used to kill pests, but many are bad for human health. They may pollute water, and go into rivers, lakes, and ponds. This will cause acid rain, and organisms living in the water can get sick and die, because the water where they live has more acid.
Pesticide runoff is very bad for animals, especially amphibians.
[change] Alternatives
In many cases, there are alternatives to the use of (chemical) pesticides. These include:
- Use of genetic engineering
- Release of otrher organisms to control the pests, such as predators or parasites. That way, ducks can be used in rice fields to act against snails, for example
- Use of polycultures, that is growing many different crops together, rather than just one crop.
