Most organophosphoates are not persistent and will break down to non-toxic materials in one to 30 days, depending on the compound. Organophosphates do not accumulate in fatty materials and do not accumulate in food chains. These compounds act mainly as contact insecticides although they may also act as stomach poisons and fumigants. The carbamate compounds are also a large group of insecticides. As a rule, these compounds are slightly more persistent in the environment than the organophorphrous compounds, but do not accumulate in the environment or fatty tissues of mammals.
Most carbamates are only moderately toxic to mammals.
They mainly act as contact insecticides with some stomach activity. Insect Growth Regulators Insect growth regulators are chemicals that affect the ability of insects to growth and mature normally. They are based on and often mimic the growth hormones that occur naturally within the insect's body. Because mammals do not molt like insects do, most insect growth regulators are not very toxic to man and domestic animals. Microbial Pesticides Microbial pesticides are formulated disease organisms of pests, many of which are grown in large quantities in manufacturing plants.