Clothianidin Sorption in Missouri Wetland Soils

Neonicotinoid insecticides were introduced in the late 1990s and rapidly experienced wide-spread usage, due in part to their prophylactic use as an agricultural seed treatment. Physicochemical properties (e.g., high water solubility, long half-lives) of neonicotinoids enhance their environmental mobility which has led to detections in global surface waters and wetlands. Deleterious effects of neonicotinoids on non-target insects and wildlife emphasizes the need to determine management practices and environmental conditions that inhibit neonicotinoid mobility through soil. Clothianidin (CTN), introduced in 2003, is one of the most commonly applied neonicotinoid active ingredients. Understanding CTN sorption (the process by which compounds are removed from solution to a solid phase) to wetland soils provides an indication as to whether the chemical is likely to remain mobile and more bioavailable in the environment.
MDC Science Note Vol 14 No 7, 2019.