# Assessment of Pesticide Contamination of Groundwater from Titu-Sarata Plain, Romania
## 4 Discussion  
Addressing human health issues related to pesticide exposure is essential. Knowledge of potential health risks can empower individuals to take measures to protect themselves from pesticide residues in drinking water. Several OPs were identified in the groundwater (used as drinking water) samples collected from the Titu-Sarata Plain, Romania. The results obtained showed that nine samples (from Brezoaia, Crovu, Gageni, Niculesti, Palanca, Romanesti, Spataru, Suseni Bilicuresti, and Sicrita) did not meet the minimum requirements regarding pesticide values for drinking water quality (0.1 ug/L/pesticide) [44]. Exceedances of the maximum permitted concentration in the analyzed groundwater samples were observed for the following pesticides: bentazon, dichlorprop, aldicarb sulfoxide, phosdrin, carbaryl, simazine, atrazine, thionazine, and phorate. Concerning the total values of OP concentrations in the water samples, it was observed that the permissible limit (0.5 ug/L total pesticides) [44] was exceeded in the groundwater samples collected from five locations--Brezoaia, Gageni, Niculesti, Suseni Bilicuresti, and Sicrita--which shows that even low concentrations of some pesticides can be harmful. In Romania, few studies have been conducted concerning the presence of pesticides in groundwater and few public datasets are available. In two regions of Transylvania, Turda and Sighisoara, a study was conducted, and the results revealed the presence of atrazine and simazine in the groundwater samples. The concentrations of atrazine ranged from 3.07 ug/L to 8.07 ug/L, values which were higher than those found in the present study. Also, the concentration of simazine ranged from 0.1 ug/L to 0.15 ug/L, values which were comparable to those obtained in the present study [46]. A particularly serious problem is that, especially in rural areas and in small family farms, the population still uses organochlorine pesticides, most likely due to a lack of knowledge on crop protection and pest control methods. Although these compounds have been banned in the European Union due to their toxicity and high amounts of residues in manufacturing, marketing, and use, they still \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c c c} \hline \hline
**Location** & **ILCR Infants** & **ILCR Children** & **ILCR Adults** \\ \hline Baba Ana & \(9.4\times 10^{-5}\) & \(4.4\times 10^{-5}\) & \(2.5\times 10^{-5}\) \\ Brezoaia & \(1.4\times 10^{-4}\) & \(6.6\times 10^{-5}\) & \(3.7\times 10^{-5}\) \\ Baraitaru & \(1\times 10^{-4}\) & \(4.7\times 10^{-5}\) & \(2.7\times 10^{-5}\) \\ Ciocanesti & \(6.4\times 10^{-5}\) & \(3\times 10^{-5}\) & \(1.7\times 10^{-5}\) \\ Cosereni & \(7.1\times 10^{-4}\) & \(3.3\times 10^{-4}\) & \(1.8\times 10^{-4}\) \\ Fanari & \(9.8\times 10^{-5}\) & \(4.5\times 10^{-5}\) & \(2.6\times 10^{-5}\) \\ Jilavele & \(1.3\times 10^{-6}\) & \(6.1\times 10^{-7}\) & \(3.5\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Lunguletu & \(1.4\times 10^{-6}\) & \(6.5\times 10^{-7}\) & \(3.7\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Niculesti & \(1.3\times 10^{-6}\) & \(6.4\times 10^{-7}\) & \(3.7\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Odaia Turcului & \(1.8\times 10^{-6}\) & \(8.5\times 10^{-7}\) & \(4.9\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Olarii Vechi & \(1.9\times 10^{-6}\) & \(9.2\times 10^{-7}\) & \(5.3\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Predesti & \(1.8\times 10^{-6}\) & \(8.7\times 10^{-7}\) & \(5\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Palanca & \(1.1\times 10^{-6}\) & \(5.1\times 10^{-7}\) & \(3\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Romanesti & \(9.9\times 10^{-7}\) & \(4.6\times 10^{-7}\) & \(2.6\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Suseni Bilicuresti & \(1.7\times 10^{-6}\) & \(7.9\times 10^{-7}\) & \(4.6\times 10^{-7}\) \\ Salcuta & \(1.6\times 10^{-6}\) & \(7.6\times 10^{-7}\) & \(4.4\times 10^{-6}\) \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table} 
Table 7: The total ILCR values for OCPs for each location where OCPs were detected in the groundwater. pollute the waters of Romania. Although they have been banned in Romania, counterfeit pesticides continue to be illegally imported into the country [47].