Assessing the intensity of pesticide use in agriculture

In order to lower the risks associated to intensive pesticide use, efforts have been made at the European and the national level of several member countries of the European Union. In Germany, a national reduction programme for pesticides had been set up. The programme makes use of the methods elaborated in the context of the NEPTUN-project. The NEPTUN-approach had introduced several indicators to assess the intensity of pesticide use in agriculture. This approach was exemplarily applied to data from a case study region in north-eastern Germany. The aim of the paper is to discuss the strengths and weaknesses of the presented approach as based on results gained in the chosen case study region.