**9. Handling and disposal of agrochemicals**

People are exposed to pesticides through varied means of handlings for domestic and agricultural purposes. Exposure can be through spray drift, residues in the environment, contaminated food, or drinking water and these can be directly or indirectly.

This exposure can also be through absorption through the skin, ingestion through food, or inhalation during the application or perceived from the environment. Exposure has an impact on the human body as related to the amount of pesticides exposed to (dose) and length of pesticides exposure (time). The health risks associated with pesticide use are a combination of toxicity and exposure. However, responsible pesticides use involves applying the right pesticide, in the right way, dosage, interval, and at the right time.

**Figure 1** shows a typical practice of some farmers on the use of pesticides on stored products in rural communities and poor urban areas. Pesticides were applied directly to the product to extend the shelf life in storage, especially against insect infestation. The pesticides were sprayed in overdose, at the wrong time as shown in **Figure 1** (around afternoon as depicted in the shadows) and the products were bagged immediately.

Apart from hazards of residue contamination in the food crops, the human and environmental hazards are also very loud. The humans were not in any way protected from spray drift on their skin and through inhalation or direct exposure. Likewise, was the volatility escape of the sprays into the environment, contaminating and polluting nearby produce and passersby. This practice showed wrongness in terms of quantity of agrochemicals applied, time of application, exposure of the crop, the farmers also unprotected and the environment been polluted.

The indiscriminate disposal of agrochemical contents into the soil, environment, and wrong handling are shown in **Figure 2**. Rural farmers use this method to prepare pesticides in containers, mixed with hands and occasionally tasted to "ascertain efficacy" of the pesticides.

**Figure 1.** *Over dose application of pesticides on stored product.*

*Toxicity Status and Risks of Common Active Ingredients in Open Markets DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.104409*

**Figure 2.** *Indiscriminate disposal and preparation of pesticide on farm.*

This practice proves the level of ignorance and literacy of potential risks agrochemicals pose to human health beyond a reasonable doubt. The pesticides residues contaminant in soils were usually washed into the streams during rains, the same water is used for domestic activities, bathing, and even drinking.
