200 specialists from 24 countries analysed pesticides and pollutants in the environment

The University of Almería and the International Association of environmental chemistry are taking place from Sunday, November 26 and until tomorrow (29/11) two scientific events of great significance. It's '4th European Conference on pesticides and pollutants in the environment' and 'X Symposium on chemistry and modern pesticides', which will be debated on the analysis of residues of pesticides and microcontaminantes and its effects on people and nature.

The President of the Organizing Committee, Amedeo r. Fernández-Alba, researcher of the group "Pesticide residues" from the University of Almería, stated during the presentation that "not clear are the long-term effects on people of residues of pesticides and other microcontaminantes"We do not know if they can lead to chronic illness, or on the contrary are totally innocuous; There is no risk in the short or medium term, but it is unknown if they can be a cause or an ingredient of later problems, called genotoxicity"." Fernández-Alba rejected the scare-mongering pointing out: "the majority should not have any negative effect and we are talking about very low, with consequences in the long term, concentrations but it is essential to clarify those effects". For this reason, he opted for "reconsideration the entire process, investigate and discuss whether we are using the proper procedures or are spared us some microcontaminantes, while, at the Symposium, we will see the latest innovations in instrumentation".

The impact of drugs in wastewater was one of the themes star treaties during the Conference. In this sense Fernández-Alba pointed out that "don't know the impact of drugs ranging to wastewater." A person takes a drug, whose remains excreted in the urine and they arrive at a treatment plant. We must check that these treatments are really effective to eliminate all the microcontaminantes"." To discuss this and other topics, the Congress is counted with the participation of more than 200 experts from 24 countries. The sessions will be held until the morning.

In addition to the role of drugs as pollutants, the European Conference and the Symposium has been time to address issues such as technical analysis of pesticides, levels of residues in the water, air and Earth, qualities of agricultural products, technologies for analysis of pesticides in the water and the Earth, dangers to the environment, simulation models in the transport and distribution of pesticides, laboratories and fields of experimentation, pollutants in agriculture, analysis of residues of pesticides in plants and other aspects of modern chemistry. At the same time there will be an exhibition on instrumentation and chemistry of waste-related publications.

Source: Andalusia investigates