Drivers of the unintended use of emptied chemical containers by smallholder farmers

To increase agricultural productivity, each year, an estimated two million tonnes of various pesticides are used worldwide. Thus, indiscriminate pesticide use and household use of empty pesticide containers are jeopardizing human health and the environment. Pesticide containers should be disposed of in a controlled container management system after dispensing their contents. This study assesses farmers' practice of pesticide container usage at home, the reasons behind, handling practices, and the status of empty pesticide container management schemes in the study area. The findings revealed that a significant proportion of the farmers used empty pesticide containers for various unintended household purposes (χ² = 15.4, p < 0.0001; 68%), such as storage of liquid and solid foods, food preparation utensils, and water tanks. Farmers prefer empty chemical containers ascribed of their durability, ease of access, and affordability, and the significant majority of the farmers used them for more than five years (96%; χ² = 83.6, p < 0.0001). Washing containers was a common practice by the significant majority (87%; χ² = 53, p < 0.0001) using hot water, followed by fumigation with Olea africana wood splits. The majority of the respondents disagree that empty chemical containers are harmful to human health, and argue that cleaning can make them safe for household use (63%; χ² = 15.4, p < 0.0001). A significant proportion of the respondents were not aware of the means of disposing of empty chemical containers (97%; χ² = 130, p < 0.0001). Discarding empty chemical containers was significantly associated with age, family size, and educational background. Farmers with a lower level of education have the highest rate of using empty chemical containers compared to the respondents with advanced literacy. No empty chemical container management scheme was implemented at the study sites.