Abraham Tal,

Baruch Rubin,

Jaacov Katan 

Nadav Aharonson

Laboratory experiments were conducted to determine the fate of 14C-EPTC in a soil that had a history of vernolate application and exhibited accelerated degradation of carbamothioate herbicides compared to nonhistory soil. A very rapid mineralization of the herbicide to 14CO2 was evident in history soil, compared to nonhistory soil. The two soils did not differ in the amounts of the EPTC lost through volatilization or in the nonextractable radioactive fractions. Except for small quantities of EPTC-sulfoxide and sulfone, no other metabolites were detected. Degradation of 14C-EPTC, as determined by evolution of 14CO2 in history soil, was drastically inhibited following soil sterilization by means of autoclaving or gamma irradiation. Soil disinfestation by solarization, methyl bromide, or metham had a pronounced inhibitory effect during the first 6 days, but was less effective than sterilization. Treatment of a history soil with the fungicide 2-methoxyethylmercury chloride and dietholate strongly inhibited EPTC degradation, while thiram and fentin acetate had only short lasting effects. Cycloheximide, an antifungal antibiotic, had little effect on the degradation of EPTC while chloramphenicol, an antibacterial antibiotic, inhibited the herbicide degradation. These results indicate that accelerated degradation of EPTC is linked to the activity of soil microorganisms, e.g. bacteria, and can be controlled by sterilization and chemical treatments.