Chemicals are used worldwide to protect crops and structures, manage pests, and prevent the spread of disease. While beneficial to society, these pesticides can pose human health and environmental risks. Pesticides provides a comprehensive and international collection of data concerning the substances used to repel or mitigate pests ranging from insects, animals and weeds to microorganisms.

A valuable feature of this reference is its organization by functional category. The 1,844 chemical entities are divided into the following 17 functional categories: Acaricides, Algicides, Animal Repellants, Bactericides, Bird Repellants, Fungicides, Herbicides, Insecticides, Molluscicides, Nematicides, Piscicides, Plant Growth Regulators, Rodenticides, Safeners, Slimicides, Termiticides and Miscellaneous Chemicals.

This compilation provides important chemical and toxicity data for the 1800 substances registered by the US Environmental Protection Agency and used largely in the agricultural environment. The chemical, physical and bioactivity properties of each agent are recorded along with a comprehensive listing of product trade names and synonyms as well as manufacturers. The EPA status of each agent is given and each record carries the appropriate CAS Registry Number and the associated EINECS Number where available. The Merck Index number is provided for all chemicals in this edition which also appear in the 13th edition of the Merck Index. Wherever possible, the following information is also displayed for each entry: melting point, boiling point, density or specific gravity, refractive index, optical rotation, ultraviolet absorption, and solubility as well as chronic and acute toxicities.

A key strength of this new reference is the extensive coverage of synonyms. The book includes an index of 28,000 chemical synonyms and trade names with a cross-reference to their main entry. This extraordinarily comprehensive view of trade name and generic synonyms makes Pesticides one of the world's most exhaustive references for agricultural chemical synonyms.