Ethion toxicity

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Registration Standards for Pesticide Products Containing Ethion as the Active Ingredient, Office of Pesticides and Toxic Substances, Washington, DC, 1989. 

While these data represent mere snapshots of the global situation, they ofier a stark warning. Given that the use of such toxic pesticides is widespread, evidence of contamination found at one location points to a potential far greater problem worldwide. Furthermore, the few studies which have analysed the frequency of cottonseed contamination have found pesticide residues to be widespread. A recent analysis of cottonseed samples harvested in 5 locations in India found 26 % to be contaminated with chlorpyrifos (WHO II), 22% with endo-sulfan (WHO II),and 16% with ethion (WHO II) . While a parallel study conducted in Pakistan found almost 75% of cottonseed samples to be contaminated with pesticides, with 41% exceeding the prescribed maximum residue limits . According to a recent study conducted by researchers in India, Because of the injudicious and indiscriminate use of insecticides, it is feared that cotton reaching the market may be heavily contaminated with insecticide residues. ... 

The herbicide Paraquat was found to cause mutations in nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria and also reduce chlorophyll content of algae. 6,7 DDT and its metabolites DDE and DDD are widespread soil pollutants that alter the species composition of soil algae and nitrogen-fixing bacteria and entirely eliminate some species of these. 8 The pesticides hexaconazole, carbo-furan, and ethion are toxic to soil microflora and result in the reduction of soil bacteria countsJ9 ... 

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