Cleaner water
by integrated pest management (IPM)
The general principles of the IPM (Directive 2009/128/EC)
•Prevent pest risks and need of pesticides by cultivating techniques
•Methods: crop rotation, tilling, hardy and pest resistant cultivars and pest monitoring
•Thresholds, forecasting methods spraying only when necessary
•Precision control
•Sustainable use of pesticides
Reduce health and environmental risks
Prevent the pesticide leaching to water systems
Co-operation with farmers
•In the PesticideLife project, IPM is demonstrated on Finnish cereal farms
•Farmers, advisors and scientists learn from each other in processes associated with IPM
Healthier plants utilize nutrients more effectively
Less runoff to the environment
Influence on water systems - cleaner water
Green Week, 22 to 25 May 2012, Brussels
Irmeli Markkula1, Aino-Maija Mustalahti1, Kati Räsänen1, Kari Tiilikkala1, Pauliina Laitinen2 , Sanni Junnila 1
1MTT Agrifood Research Finland 2Finnish Safety and Chemicals Agency Tukes
”In farming we should not fight against the biology of a field ecosystem,
but carry biology as a weapon against pests.” Kari Vaismaa – a farmer of the demonstration farms
Water systems in Finland
• Surface waters and ground waters are mostly
connected to Baltic sea (Fig.1)
• Relatively larger water area than field area (Tike)
• In relation to field area one of the lowest plant protection
products (PPP) usage rate when compared to other EU
countries (FAOSTAT)
Still residues in surface and ground water systems (Syke)
• In the future precipitation and temperature are predicted to
increase especially in the winter caused by the climate
change (A2, A1B, B1 scenarios)
Plant protection products and nutrients
• Physical-chemical properties of the
substance
• Amount
• Timing
Environmental factors
• Geography
• Weather and climate
• Growing season
• Soil type
Function of plants and other organisms
• Field ecosystem
• Plant health
• Biology
References •TIKE, 2012. Available at www.tike.fi. •FAOSTAT, 2012. Available at http://faostat.fao.org/site/424/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=424#ancor •SYKE, 2012. Available at www.ymparisto.fi. •ACCLIM -project 2011. Available at www.ilmatieteenlaitos.fi •www.mtt.fi/pesticidelife/en •Co-funded by Life+ financial instrument of the EU
Fig. 1 The land of the thousand lakes. Surface and ground water systems in Finland. (MTT: Eeva Lehtonen 2012)
Water
system
condition
