Pesticide Use Risk Map (2023)
This layer rates the biodiversity risk posed by pesticide use in each country, based on how much pesticide is applied per hectare of agricultural land.
Source: FAO / WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter Year: 2023 Category: Transition risks · Pollution Coverage: Global (national level, 197 countries) Format: Boundary polygons (country) Used in risk analysis: Yes — gates Pollution
What it shows
This layer rates the biodiversity risk posed by pesticide use in each country, based on how much pesticide is applied per hectare of agricultural land. Intensive pesticide use is a recognised pressure on biodiversity — affecting pollinators, soil life and freshwater ecosystems — so the map helps identify where agricultural inputs may threaten nature.
How it is built
The underlying variable is national pesticide application intensity (quantity used per hectare of agricultural land) for the year 2023, drawn from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Each of the 197 countries is assigned to one of five risk categories using classification thresholds defined by the WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter methodology. Because it is reported at the country level, the entire territory of a country carries a single risk class.
How to read it
Countries are graded into five classes from very low (green) to very high (dark red). A higher class means more intensive pesticide use per hectare and therefore greater potential pressure on biodiversity. A site is assessed according to the class of the country it falls within, so this is a broad national signal rather than a local measurement.
Class thresholds
The underlying quantity is a physical flux: pesticide application intensity per hectare of agricultural land (kg/ha), taken from FAO national statistics for 2023 (field PEST_KGHA, ranging roughly 0–39 kg/ha across countries). Each country's value places it in one of five risk classes:
| Class | Risk level | Pesticide use (kg/ha) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Very low risk | 0 – 0.54 |
| 2 | Low risk | 0.54 – 1.29 |
| 3 | Moderate risk | 1.29 – 3.19 |
| 4 | High risk | 3.19 – 6.89 |
| 5 | Very high risk | 6.89 – 38.77 |
A site is flagged on the Pollution dimension when its country falls in the High risk or Very high risk class (i.e. pesticide use above ~3.19 kg/ha), matching the in = ["High risk", "Very high risk"] proximity rule in the layer configuration.
How these thresholds were set. The five-class split follows the WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter (BRF) methodology, applied to the FAO 2023 data. The breaks correspond to quantiles of the global distribution (20th / 40th / 60th / 80th percentiles), so the non-round kg/ha cut-points reflect percentile-based classes rather than fixed round numbers; the exact derivation is set in the WWF BRF methodology and is not re-documented here.
Reference: WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter — riskfilter.org/biodiversity.
Source
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), pesticide use 2023; risk classification thresholds from the WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter.
Comparison with the WWF Risk Filter Suite
This layer corresponds to BRF S13_4 Pollution. It is built on the same FAO inputs and WWF classification thresholds, so it is closely aligned with the WWF methodology. Darwin also offers finer gridded pollution risk maps elsewhere; this country-level pesticide map matches WWF's national resolution directly.
Risk analysis
A site is flagged on a dimension by combining a proximity trigger (this layer) with an activity trigger (the entity's ENCORE pressure/service). Proximity only → Potentially material; proximity and the matching ENCORE pressure/service is material → Very material; neither → Not material.
| Dimension | ENCORE service / pressure | Proximity trigger (this layer) | Activity trigger (entity) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pollution | Emissions of toxic soil and water pollutants | Layer value above 3 | “Emissions of toxic soil and water pollutants” pressure ≥ 4 |
Legend
Symbolised field: Pesticide Use Risk Level (RISK_SCORE, 1–5). The underlying variable is pesticide application intensity (kg/ha, ≈ 0–40), binned into five quantile classes after the WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter.
| Class | Risk level | Quantile | Pesticide use (kg/ha) | Colour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Very low risk | ≤ 20th pct | 0 – 0.54 | #2ecc71 |
| 2 | Low risk | 20–40th pct | 0.54 – 1.29 | #f39c12 |
| 3 | Moderate risk | 40–60th pct | 1.29 – 3.19 | #e67e22 |
| 4 | High risk | 60–80th pct | 3.19 – 6.89 | #e74c3c |
| 5 | Very high risk | > 80th pct | 6.89 – 38.77 | #8b0000 |
Source: WWF Biodiversity Risk Filter (kg/ha class breaks). The risk flag triggers at class 4 (High) and above (i.e. in = ["High risk", "Very high risk"], pesticide use above ~3.19 kg/ha).
Generated from darwin/layers/layer-pesticide-use-risk-map-2023.toml and risk_indicator_pairs.toml (develop).