Protecting effect of recycled urban wastes (sewage sludge and wastewater) on ryegrass against the toxicity of pesticides at high concentrations

• Addition of sewage sludge and irrigation with wastewater are becoming usual farming practices.
• Their effect on the uptake of two pesticides, thiacloprid and fenarimol, by ryegrass was evaluated.
• Higher ryegrass biomass was achieved with both urban wastes without pesticide application.
• Pesticide amounts in soil and ryegrass depended on pesticide polarity and persistence.
• Application of both, sewage sludge and wastewater, protected ryegrass from pesticide uptake.

Degraded landscapes, like those from abandoned mine areas, could be restored by revegetating them with appropriate plant species, after correction for acidity and improvement by adding exogenous organic material. Application of urban wastes to large areas of derelict land helps in the sustainable development of this landscape. However, the development of plant species in these soils could require in the future the management of possible pests or diseases by pesticide applications which could also affect plant yield. Therefore, ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) was planted in a limed soil from the mining area of Riotinto (SW Spain), using an indoor pot experiment and the effects of amendment with sewage sludge, as well as irrigation with urban wastewater on plant uptake of the insecticide thiacloprid and the fungicide fenarimol were examined. Ryegrass biomass was reduced up to 3-fold by pesticide application. Fenarimol residues were the highest in soil, while those of thiacloprid were lower in soil and higher in ryegrass. Addition of sewage sludge and irrigation with wastewater led to a reduction of pesticide translocation to the aerial plant parts, representing a lower hazard to ryegrass quality grown in this mine soil.

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