Borja Muñoz Leoz – 2012

The adverse environmental impact associated with the use of fertilizers and pesticides in agriculture may compromise the future sustainability of agricultural activity. Consequently, in this doctoral thesis, the degradation of water and soil quality associated with the use/abuse of fertilizers and pesticides has been studied through the use of microbial parameters as indicators of the health of the soil ecosystem. Specifically, an important part of this study has focused on the Vulnerable Zone of Vitoria-Gasteiz.

In addition to the impact of nitrate pollution on the Vulnerable Zone, the impact of various pesticides (deltamethrin, ethofumesate, difenoconazole) has been determined using parameters that provide information on the biomass, activity and biodiversity of the microbial communities responsible for the functioning of the soil.