ABSTRACT
Carbaryl release to the environment results from its uses as a molluscicide and an insecticide and acaricide on a variety of crops. Carbaryl may leach to ground water based on its moderate soil sorption coefficient. Monitoring data indicate that carbaryl is a contaminant in food and a minor contaminant in drinking and surface water. Carbaryl is used as a contact and stomach insecticide against a variety of insect pests of cotton, fruits, vegetables, ornamental trees and shrubs and animals and livestock. The photolysis half-life of carbaryl calculated from experimentally determined parameters ranged from 52-264 hr for a summer day at latitude 40 degrees north. Carbaryl was detected but not quantified in organic extracts from British and West German river water samples. Carbaryl exposure in humans is most likely by inhalation or dermal exposure in occupational settings or from ingestion of contaminated food for general population.
