Pesticide remediation in soil and aquatic systems: Comparative assessment of conventional and advanced treatment pathways

Abstract

Pesticides are widely used to protect crops; however, persistent residues and transformation products contaminate soils, surface waters, and groundwater through runoff, leaching, and infiltration, and may biomagnify across food chains. Such contamination can impair soil fertility and biodiversity, disrupt nutrient cycling, and pose chronic risks to ecosystems and human health, with residue levels varying according to pesticide chemistry, application intensity, climate, and site-specific matrix properties. This review provides a comparative and critical synthesis of pesticide remediation strategies across soil and aquatic systems, integrating conventional and emerging techniques. Physical, chemical, and biological methods are evaluated in terms of underlying mechanisms, matrix-specific performance, and practical applicability, alongside advanced and hybrid techniques. A distinguishing feature is the explicit emphasis on synergies and hybridization, as they show improved performance over single-process techniques in terms of pesticide removal efficiency and reduction of operational limitations. Key constraints, including cost, field deployability, long-term effectiveness, and the potential for secondary impacts in the formation of transformation products, are discussed to support the context-specific selection of sustainable remediation solutions. • Comprehensive categorization of remediation methods- physical, chemical, biological, and advanced (or hybrid) methods. • Critical evaluation of mechanisms, efficiencies, and limitations of each technique. • Assesses synergies and complementarities among different remediation techniques for enhanced efficacy.