Pesticides in the environment.

Abstract

" The world's population of 5. 3 billion is increasing by 3 people every second - about a quarter of a million every day. Many countries are running out of good cropland; it is estimated that 580 million people now live in absolute poverty on marginal or fragile land " The state of world Population 1991- United Nations Population Fund If the people of the world are to survive, crop protection is essential in order to provide adequate food supplies. It is just not possible to rely on organic systems of agriculture; yields are simply too small for the number of mouths to feed. Pesticides are widely used all over the world; in agricultural, in the home, in the garden, for preserving timber and treating textiles and in a wide range of every day industrial processes. Various organisations through out the world were formed to defend the interests of mankind and his environment. Pesticides used in Malta are imported from other countries. Most of the food we eat are also imported either as the raw stage or the finished product. So we cannot live in a world of our own and concentrate on what is happening in Malta but broaden our knowledge on what is also happening in other countries.