XDrift—An R package to simulate spatially explicit pesticide spray-drift exposure of non-target-species habitats at landscape scales

Authorization of pesticides in the European Union is based on a risk assessment that aims at prevention of unacceptable ecological effects. This ecological risk assessment increasingly requires data and tools to base informed decisions on a more realistic modeling of processes at different scales. XDrift is the R implementation of such a data-driven model dealing with spray-drift exposure resulting from pesticide spray-applications. It employs the same data on spray-drift depositions as used in the regulatory risk assessment but conserves observed variability. Applied in a multi-scale modeling environment, XDrift projects measured drift deposition patterns into landscape scenarios. Both, users and researchers benefit from the publication of the R package and its source code.