ISTC researchers are investigating the environmental impacts of several agricultural chemicals and devising novel solutions to prevent environmental contamination.
Featured Project
Agricultural chemicals such as pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, and nitrogen inhibitors are effective tools for agricultural and horticultural production, as well as gardening and lawn maintenance; however, they also have consequences. A classic example is the pesticide DDT. Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, or DDT, was first synthesized in 1874, and its insecticide properties were discovered in 1939. It was heavily used towards the end of WWII to control the spread of malaria and typhus. It was then used in agriculture in the U.S. until 1972, when it was banned. DDT is an environmental and human health hazard because of its persistent affinity to sorb to soil and its propensity to bioaccumulate, especially in predatory birds. In addition, DDT is a developmental and reproductive toxin and a carcinogen.
Modern agricultural chemicals may not have consequences as extreme as DDT, but many can still affect the environment and human health in unintended ways.
Macronutrient Capture and Recovery
ISTC researchers are creating designer biochars and novel treatment systems to capture and recover macronutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus from agricultural drainage systems.
Learn more about our efforts to promote a circular nutrient system.