The systematic utilisation of synthetic chemicals for
the confrontation of pests in agriculture that began substantially
in 1940 with the appearance of the insecticide DDT
contributed to productivity improvement and increase, but
had negative repercussions on the environment. Among the
active chemical compounds that find application as plantprotection
products, insecticides mostly have harmful
effects.
There is a large amount of bibliography about hazardous
effects of insecticides not only to the environment [1-
7], but also to human health [8-16]. Despite the interest
for productivity increase in the agricultural sector, no one
can dispute the need for better knowledge of the insecticides’
attributes, the manipulation and the ecotoxicological
repercussions to aquatic organisms.
This study aims to evaluate the toxicity of the insecticide
Lannate, used in the potato crop production and its
main substance methomyl. Methomyl is considered as particularly
toxic, but it is widely used in agriculture [17-19].
A few studies have been conducted to determine the toxicity
of methomyl to aquatic organisms [20, 21] with deleterious
effects [22] especially on fish [23, 24]. Also neither
the toxicity of methomyl to humans has been studied
extensively. However lethal accidents [25 -26], and lethal
poisoning of farmers from Lannate [28] and methomyl
have also been recorded [28, 29].
The toxicity evaluation of Lannate and methomyl was
tested firstly by using two fish species, the trout (Oncorhynchus
mykiss) and the tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and
secondly by the crustacean Thamnocephalus platyurus [30].
The main objective of this study was: to evaluate the
toxicity of Lannate and methomyl and to determine the
potential hazard posed to a common crustacean Thamnocephalus
platyurus, as well as, to a commercial fish like the
trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and to the tilapia Oreochromis
niloticus.