Abstract—The environment pollution with pesticides and heavy metals is a recognized problem nowadays, with extension to the global scale the tendency of amplification. Even with all the progress in the environmental field, both in the emphasize of the effect of the pollutants upon health, the linked studies environment-health are insufficient, not only in Romania but all over the world also. We aim to describe the particular situation in Romania regarding the uncontrolled use of pesticides, to identify and evaluate the risk zones for health and the environment in Romania, with the final goal of designing adequate programs for reduction and control of the risk sources. An exploratory study was conducted to determine the magnitude of the pesticide use problem in a population living in Saliste, a rural setting in Transylvania, Romania. The significant stakeholders in Saliste region were interviewed and a sample from the population living in Saliste area was selected to fill in a designed questionnaire. All the selected participants declared that they used pesticides in their activities for more than one purpose. They declared they annually applied pesticides for a period of time between 11 and 30 years, from 5 to 9 days per year on average, mainly on crops situated at some distance from the houses but high risk behavior was identified as the volunteers declared the use of pesticides in the backyard gardens, near their homes, where children were playing. The pesticide applicators did not have the necessary knowledge about safety and exposure. The health data must be correlated with exposure biomarkers in attempt to identify the possible health effects of the pesticides exposure. Future plans include educational campaigns to raise the awareness of the population on the danger of uncontrolled use of pesticides. Keywords—Pesticides, health effects, Romania, Saliste. I. INTRODUCTION ESTICIDES contain the active principles and products conceived to act upon fundamental processes of living organisms and as a consequence have the potential to kill or fight pests. The ecologic deliberate effect of any of the pesticide is to A. E. Gurzau is with the Regional Center for Environmental and Health Risk Assessment, Cluj-Napoca, 400166 Romania (phone: +40 264 432979; fax:+40264534404; e-mail:anca.gurzau@ehc.ro). A. Coman is with the Environmental Health Center, Cluj-Napoca, 400166, Romania (e-mail: alex@ehc.ro). E. S. Gurzau is with the Environmental Health Center, Cluj-Napoca, 400166, Romania (e-mail: egurzau@ehc.ro). M. Penes is with the Environmental Health Center, Cluj-Napoca, 400166, Romania (e-mail: mpenes@ehc.ro). D. Dumitrescu is with the Center for Rural Health Integration, Saliste, 557225, Romania (mesar_saliste@yahoo.com). D. Marchean is with the Center for Rural Health Integration, Saliste, 557225, Romania (mesar_saliste@yahoo.com). I. Chera is with the Center for Rural Health Integration, Saliste, 557225, Romania (mesar_saliste@yahoo.com). protect the population from certain harmful pests, through the decrease of this abundance They are considered essential for protection of crops against insects, rats and natural pathogenic agents, but at the same time they may accumulate in the environment and involve serious risks for human and animal health, especially when contaminate the drinking water. The environment pollution with pesticides and heavy metals is a recognized problem nowadays, with extension to the global scale the tendency of amplification. Spread in the environment these elements can be traced in different factors (airs, water, soil – vectors of propagation from where they are taken over by all living organisms, vegetable or animals [4,8]. Through the ingestion of the food, water, breathe and another process, the polluted elements (pesticides and heavy metals) gain access the human body, where can produce severe disorders [12]. The pesticides are included in a large spectrum of organic micro pollutants which have ecological impact. Although terrestrial impact of the pesticides exist, the most important way thought which these cause ecological impact, is contaminated water throughout the leakages of pesticides. The exposure of the population to pesticides as the results of their extensive utilization in agriculture represents the most important way of exposure for the rural population. The potential risks for man are mainly cancer, genetic disturbances and irreversible deterioration of the immune system [1,2,5,11]. Risks upon human health may appear as a result of direct or indirect exposure, improper or accidental utilization especially for agricultural purposes, for maintenance of green spaces or other activities [1,2]. The effect of indirect exposure of people that live in the areas where these substances are pulverized and dispersed in the air or of consumers (pesticides residues on agricultural products or in water) may be even worse especially for vulnerable groups [3,10]. Recent studies showed the specific sensibility of fetuses whose neurological development was affected where mothers were exposed to pesticides [9,11]. It is imperative to take into consideration the risks for the environment that appear as a result of excessive and involuntary introduction of chemical substances in water, air and soil with injurious effects upon plants, wild flora and fauna, upon the quality of the natural environments and biodiversity in general [6,12]. At the same time the modern society is based on utilization of a large scale of fertilizers, biocides, food supplements, insecticides, pesticides and herbicides with benefic effects in obtaining higher quality and food security levels. Pesticides Use in Rural Settings in Romania Anca E. Gurzau, Alexandru Coman, Eugen S. Gurzau, Marinela Penes, Daniela Dumitrescu, Dorin Marchean, and Ioan Chera P World Academy of Science, Engineering and Technology International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences Vol:2, No:8, 2008 802 International Scholarly and Scientific Research & Innovation 2(8) 2008 scholar.waset.org/1307-6892/9840 International Science Index, Humanities and Social Sciences Vol:2, No:8, 2008 waset.org/Publication/9840