Factors Associated with Levels of Organophosphate Pesticides in Household Dust in Agricultural Communities

Grace Kuiper, Bonnie N. Young, Sherry WeMott, Grant Erlandson, Nayamin Martinez, Jesus Mendoza, Greg Dooley, Casey Quinn, Wande O. Benka-Coker and Sheryl Magzamen
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Grace Kuiper: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Bonnie N. Young: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Sherry WeMott: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Grant Erlandson: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Nayamin Martinez: Central California Environmental Justice Network, Fresno, CA 93727, USA
Jesus Mendoza: Central California Environmental Justice Network, Fresno, CA 93727, USA
Greg Dooley: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Casey Quinn: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Wande O. Benka-Coker: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
Sheryl Magzamen: Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 2, 1-17

Abstract: Organophosphate (OP) pesticides are associated with numerous adverse health outcomes. Pesticide use data are available for California from the Pesticide Use Report (PUR), but household- and individual-level exposure factors have not been fully characterized to support its refinement as an exposure assessment tool. Unique exposure pathways, such as proximity to agricultural operations and direct occupational contact, further complicate pesticide exposure assessment among agricultural communities. We sought to identify influencing factors of pesticide exposure to support future exposure assessment and epidemiological studies. Household dust samples were collected from 28 homes in four California agricultural communities during January and June 2019 and were analyzed for the presence of OPs. Factors influencing household OPs were identified by a data-driven model via best subsets regression. Key factors that impacted dust OP levels included household cooling strategies, secondary occupational exposure to pesticides, and geographic location by community. Although PUR data demonstrate seasonal trends in pesticide application, this study did not identify season as an important factor, suggesting OP persistence in the home. These results will help refine pesticide exposure assessment for future studies and highlight important gaps in the literature, such as our understanding of pesticide degradation in an indoor environment.

Keywords: pesticides; exposure modeling; environmental monitoring; empirical/statistical models; environmental justice; vulnerable populations (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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