Project R-15212

Development of a semiquantitative analysis model applicable to the assessment of environmental damage in agroecosystems (Research)

In recent years, the agricultural production model has faced with the idea of achieving a balance between an improvement in production versus a sustainable and careful use of environmental resources. Thus, numerous strategies have been developed to make the exploitation of resources as least harmful as possible, although without being able to avoid the use of agrochemicals as an improving productive performance agent. However, the sustained, intensive and indiscriminate use of agrochemicals adversely affected the soil biodiversity, agricultural sustainability, and food safety, bringing in long-term harmful effects on nutritional security, human and animal health. Most of the agrochemicals negatively affect soil microbial functions and biochemical processes. In this way, microbiome and their genes expression has been used as bioindicators to assess the quality of an environment polluted by agrochemicals. The main aim of this project is to generate the necessary knowledge to develop a semi-quantitative model applicable to the assessment of environmental damage in agroecosystems, based on the integration of physical, chemical and microbiological data. Agroecosystems that present a detailed record of the last 20 years history related to the agrochemicals use and agronomic management will be sampled. Additionally, productive soils with two different management: low and high level of agronomic intervention, will provide an opportunity for comparison of the data variability due to the management strategies and how they possibly influence in the assessment of environmental damage. On the other hand, to have a comparative side of acute contamination, we will sample agroecosystems where the concentration of agrochemicals is abnormally high (places where agrochemical solutions are prepared and/or crop sprayer are cleaned). By chemometrics, our results will certainly contribute to a deeper understanding of which variables are most relevant to assess, in order to establish the damage due to the intensive use of agrochemicals in agroecosystems.

09 October 2024 - 08 October 2028