Pesticides are commercial goods that include poisonous chemicals that are intentionally sprayed onto crops to prevent pests such as insects, rodents, fungus, and weeds. They include a wide range of chemical compounds, including as herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides, among others. 

Because of deforestation and soil degradation during the previous two decades, Ghana is establishing almost 500,000 hectares of forest plantations. Lower dosages of pesticides are used for vegetation control during the first two to three years after seedling planting in forest plantations. Pesticides totaling 5 billion pounds (lbs) are used annually in worldwide trade worth more than $40 billion. African farmers utilize only 4% of the world's pesticides, yet pesticide use is widespread. According to Ghana's Environmental Protection Authority, the country imports at least $100 million in pesticides each year.  

In Ghana, herbicides are used to manage vegetation in forest restoration initiatives. Since market liberalization in the mid-1990s, the herbicides business has taken off in Ghana, with the government serving as the principal distributor of discounted pricing to farmers. As a result, the usage of herbicides has increased in recent years. Herbicides of various types are used to selectively remove or kill non-economic plant species, which frequently compete with crops for light, water, space, and nutrients.

Herbicides are considered as an effective and economical vegetation management technique, with the potential to minimize dependency on manual weeding, which can delay operations during times of labor scarcity and increase weed infestation in the plantation. Herbicide use alters plant ecosystems, impacting plant species. Many herbicides have a broad range of action, killing not just the target plants but also non-target creatures that are vital to the ecosystem. 

Soil of poor quality. Although pesticides are intended to aid plant development, they can also impede it over time. Because the chemicals in them can diminish the quantity of organic matter in soil, decreasing its ability to hold moisture and overall quality. Not only does this immediately harm biodiversity, but it also leads to poorer agricultural yields in the future since it may linger in the ecosystem for many years, eventually building up to dangerous levels.

Contaminated drinking water. Pesticides can enter streams, rivers, lakes, reservoirs, coastal waters, and subterranean supplies through a variety of routes, including soil leaching, agricultural run-off after heavy rain, and spills during transportation, storage, and application. It can pollute drinking water for humans as well as harm aquatic creatures. The United Kingdom has conducted studies utilizing the most advanced and sophisticated methodologies to demonstrate that pesticide levels in several rivers and groundwater reserves have reached dangerous levels.

Pollution of the atmosphere. A portion of pesticides are carried away by the breeze before they have even had a chance to settle on the intended crop. They can potentially vanish at a later moment or time. Different substances can react differently depending on the surrounding circumstances (temperature, humidity, and wind direction) and can possibly be transported hundreds of kilometres away. Certain of these compounds are contaminants in and of themselves, while others can react with air particles to generate additional pollutants such as ground-level ozone.

Bee population fall. Although pesticides are designed to precisely target pest plants, animals, and fungus, other species are sometimes caught in the crossfire. Some of the most regularly used insecticides (such as neonicotinoids) are now proven to cause irreversible harm to bee populations. Because of their critical function as pollinators, the worldwide bee population loss is extremely alarming for biodiversity all over the world.

Ecosystems of animals. Pesticides can also mistakenly wipe out other plant species that provide as critical food supplies for a range of animals. These creatures are therefore compelled to either shift away from their native environment in search of food or starve. At the same time, animals that consume pesticide-treated plants or insects may experience bioaccumulation, polluting the entire food chain. 

In conclusion: Pesticides has negative effect on the environment and human health, therefore, there is a need for the government and other state institution, individual take positive action to regulate the use of pesticides on the environment as well as mass education to famers. 

Ref. Farmers’ perceptions of herbicide usage in forest landscape restoration programs in Ghana - ScienceDirect 

How Do Pesticides Affect the Environment? Envirotech Online (envirotech-online.com)