Theses and Dissertations from UMD

Permanent URI for this communityhttp://hdl.handle.net/1903/2

New submissions to the thesis/dissertation collections are added automatically as they are received from the Graduate School. Currently, the Graduate School deposits all theses and dissertations from a given semester after the official graduation date. This means that there may be up to a 4 month delay in the appearance of a give thesis/dissertation in DRUM

More information is available at Theses and Dissertations at University of Maryland Libraries.

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2004 - 20062

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    Assessing the Potential for Doormats to Reduce Pesticide Residues in the Home
    (2006-05-04) Ganser, Leanne Marie; Brown, Amy E; Marine-Estuarine-Environmental Sciences; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This study examined the recommended practice of using doormats at entryways into the home to reduce indirect pesticide exposure. Using doormats to reduce track-in of pesticides is commonly recommended to pesticide applicators, but no studies of the usefulness of this recommendation appear in the literature. The effectiveness of doormats was evaluated by determining the soil levels dislodged from doormats and by determining the ability for laundering to remove pesticide residues embedded into the mats. The performance of three doormat types was assessed. High levels of soil were dislodged from all doormat types. Results from laundering mats showed large variability in the level of residues detected. The results from both studies were influenced by the methods used to test the dislodgeability and effectiveness of laundering. The results of the study suggest further studies are needed to determine the effectiveness of doormats to reduce the potential for pesticide contamination inside the home.
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    Assessment of Pesticide Residues In Farmers' House Dust and Educational Intervention to Improve Pesticide Handling Practices
    (2004-12-02) Clark, Lisa M; Brown, Amy E; Marine-Estuarine-Environmental Sciences; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
    This study investigated whether pesticide residues occur inside homes of vegetable and small fruit growers, identified pesticide handling practices that could contribute to home contamination, and evaluated the impact of an educational intervention in changing those handling practices. Dust samples were collected from the subjects' homes and analyzed for chlorothalonil. Residues were detected in carpet dust samples (8-277 ng/g), floor wipe samples (0.08-5.1 ug/sq m) and one washing machine sample (1.0 ug/sq m of washing machine). Each subject received an educational intervention consisting of a personalized report noting sites contaminated and providing recommendations of handling practices that would be expected to reduce any residues. Three sequential surveys of Maryland growers provided information regarding handling practices and changes over time. Lessons from this study could be incorporated into pesticide safety education to promote safer pesticide handling.