Effect of agricultural pesticides on the health of the community of the Opamayo river, Huancavelica

Abstract

The “Commonwealth of the Opamayo River” made up of the districts of Pampas, Ahuaycha, Acraquia and Daniel Hernández, Huancavelica region, is an agricultural area that uses pesticides to control pests and diseases in its crops, and their use poses greater risks to the environment and humans. It is for this reason that the objective of the research is to determine the effects of pesticides on the health of the inhabitants of the “mancomunidad del río Opamayo”. The study is descriptive, with inclusion criteria, inhabitants from 18 to 50 years old, who work directly in agricultural crops; and exclusion criteria, adults older than 50 years old or younger than 18 years old; who do not work in agricultural crops and those who do not wish to participate in the research. Population 30 349 inhabitants, sample 379 inhabitants. Non-probabilistic, random sampling, using the “snowball” technique. Among the results, according to their symptomatology, the majority presented “headache” (19.2%); according to the time of exposure, most farmers were exposed for 1 hour (34.8%); only 37.5% used full personal protective equipment; the most used pesticide was chlorpyrifos (27.7%); “potato” was the most used pesticide (27.7%); and “potato” was the most used pesticide. 7%), “potato” was the crop where pesticide applications were frequently made and most of the pesticides were classified in category II “moderately hazardous”, being chlorpyrifos (105 reports) the most widely used pesticide.