pesticide safety

WPS for Greenhouse Employers: Who is Covered?

The majority of the 2015 revisions to EPA’s Worker Protection Standard (WPS) go into effect on January 2, 2017.  To download the complete guide HOW TO COMPLY WITH THE 2015 REVISED WORKER PROTECTION STANDARD FOR AGRICULTURAL PESTICIDES, visit the Pesticide Educational Resources Collaborative (PERC), http://pesticideresources.org//index.html.  Over the next few weeks, we will break down the revised WPS to help wholesale and retail greenhouse employers of workers and handlers comply with WPS. This post provides an overview of WPS responsibilities, covered establishments and exemptions as provided in the HOW  TO COMPLY manual (pp 12-14; 88-91).

WPS Responsibilities

Do you have responsibilities under WPS? The answer is YES if you are:

  • An agricultural employer: any person who is an owner of, or is responsible for the management or condition of an agricultural establishment, and who employs any worker or handler.
  • A commercial pesticide handler employer: any person, other than an agricultural employer, who employs any handler to perform handler activities on an agricultural establishment.
  • A handler: any person, including a self-employed person, who is employed by an agricultural employer or commercial pesticide handler employer and performs certain activities including but not limited to mixing, loading or applying pesticides.

Covered Establishments

The WPS applies to any establishment involved in growing, maintaining or producing agricultural plants (includes, but is not limited to, grains, fruits and vegetables; wood fiber or timber products; flowering and foliage plants and trees; seedlings and transplants; and turf grass produced for sod) for commercial and/or research or experimental purposes. Commercial production includes production of plants for sale, trade or in-house use on the establishment or another facility. The following facilities or operations may be considered an agricultural establishment for the purposes of the WPS and are covered by the rule if they use WPS-labeled pesticide products:

  • Nurseries, garden centers or other similar operations where nursery and ornamental bedding plants are maintained for sale (retail or wholesale).
  • Dairy farms that produce hay for feed for their cattle.
  • Golf course establishments that also produce sod and/or ornamentals in one area on their facility/establishment for transplanting into the golf course portion of the facility.
  • Public park operations/facilities and/or privately-held ornamental garden operations/facilities that produce ornamental plants in one area on their establishment for transplanting into the permanent park or ornamental planting portion of the facility.
  • Theme park operations (e.g., Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World, etc.), hotels, and/or other entertainment operations that produce ornamental plants in one area on their establishment for transplanting into the permanent theme park grounds or ornamental planting portions of the facility.
  • Prisons that have “prison farms” where agricultural plants are produced and the prisoners are employed as workers and handlers.
  • University extension agricultural research facilities that conduct research on agricultural plants.
  • Educational classes or vocational agriculture programs where agricultural plants are produced as part of a class or program, students act as workers and/or handlers, and students receive monetary compensation such as a stipend, or free or reduced tuition.
  • Pine straw harvesting/production operations.
  • Government owned or managed agricultural operations.

The WPS also applies to any establishment operating as a commercial (for-hire) pesticide handling establishment that applies WPS-labeled pesticide products on agricultural establishments or provides crop advising services for an agricultural establishment.

Exemptions for Owners of Agricultural Establishments

Certain WPS requirements are exempt for owners of agricultural establishments and their immediate family members when 50% or more of equity in the establishment is owned by 1+ members of the same immediate family. Immediate family members include: spouse, parents, stepparents, foster parents, father‐in‐law, mother‐in‐law, children, stepchildren, foster children, sons‐in‐law, daughters‐in-law, grandparents, grandchildren, brothers, sisters, brothers‐in‐law, sisters‐in-law, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and first cousins. However,

  • No agricultural establishments that use WPS-labeled pesticide products are completely exempt from the WPS requirements.
  • Employers must provide full WPS protections for workers and handlers that are not immediate family members
  • Owners and their immediate family members must comply with some WPS requirements

A complete listing of these exemptions and exceptions can be found on pp. 88-91.

 

WPS for Greenhouse Employers: Pesticide Safety Training

The majority of the 2015 revisions to EPA’s Worker Protection Standard (WPS) go into effect on January 2, 2017.  To download the complete guide HOW TO COMPLY WITH THE 2015 REVISED WORKER PROTECTION STANDARD FOR AGRICULTURAL PESTICIDES, visit the Pesticide Educational Resources Collaborative (PERC), http://pesticideresources.org//index.html.  Over the next few weeks, we will break down the revised WPS to help wholesale and retail greenhouse employers of workers and handlers comply with WPS. This post provides the WPS pesticide training requirement as provided in the HOW  TO COMPLY manual (pp 27-29).

Pesticide Safety Training

All workers and handlers of agricultural employers must receive ANNUAL WPS training before they perform worker or handler tasks. Key requirements for training workers and handlers include:

  • There is no grace period for WPS training! The agricultural employer must ensure that WPS training is completed within the last 12 months before:
    • Any worker enters a treated area on an agricultural establishment where, within the last 30 days, a WPS-labeled pesticide product has been used or a REI for such pesticide has been in effect.
    • Any handler conducts any handling task.
  • Workers and handlers are exempt from WPS training if they are currently:
    • Certified as an applicator of restricted-use pesticides.
    • Certified as a crop advisor by a program acknowledged as appropriate in writing by EPA, or a State or Tribal agency responsible for pesticide enforcement. 170.401(b)
    • Additionally, a worker is exempt from WPS worker training if they have been trained as a WPS handler within the last 12 months.
  • The following qualified trainers may provide WPS training:
    • a certified applicator of restricted-use pesticides
    • a trainer of certified pesticide applicators, handlers or workers by the EPA, federal, state or tribal entities
    • have completed a EPA-approved pesticide safety train-the-trainer program
  • Train workers and handlers annually, once every 12 months from the end of the month when the previous training was completed.
  • Provide training in a manner that the workers or handlers can understand, using a translator if necessary.
  • Present training using EPA-approved materials either orally from written materials or audio-visually (see the video and links at the end of this post for those you can use with employees to satisfy the training requirement).****
  • Keep records of worker or handler training for 2 years from the date of training. Records must include:
    • Worker or handler’s printed name and signature
    • Training date
    • Trainer’s name and qualification(s) to train
    • Employer’s name
    • Identification of EPA-approved training materials (for example, the EPA document or approval number)
  • Make training records available to employees upon request.
  • All training requirements are effective January 2, 2017 EXCEPT the expanded training content which is effective January 2, 2018.

****As part of the revised WPS, the following training video satisfies the pesticide safety training requirement for agricultural workers about pesticides under the revised WPS. Additional videos are available in English and Spanish with or without closed-captioning at the Pesticide Educational Resources Collaborative (PERC), http://pesticideresources.org//index.html.

 

 

WPS for Greenhouse Employers: Workers, Handlers and Protections

The majority of the 2015 revisions to EPA’s Worker Protection Standard (WPS) go into effect on January 2, 2017.  To download the complete guide HOW TO COMPLY WITH THE 2015 REVISED WORKER PROTECTION STANDARD FOR AGRICULTURAL PESTICIDES, visit the Pesticide Educational Resources Collaborative (PERC), http://pesticideresources.org//index.html.  Over the next few weeks, we will break down the revised WPS to help wholesale and retail greenhouse employers of workers and handlers comply with WPS. This post provides an overview of WPS protections for agricultural workers, pesticide handlers, and others as provided in the HOW  TO COMPLY manual (pp 4-7).

WPS Definitions

The WPS requires employers to protect two types of agricultural employees: workers and handlers. In addition, the WPS provides certain protections for “other persons” during pesticide applications such as non-worker/handler employees, family members, customers, etc.

Who is a Worker? A worker is anyone who is:

  1. Employed (including self-employed) in exchange for a salary or wages or other monetary compensation, and
  2. Doing tasks directly related to the production of agricultural plants on an agricultural establishment such as harvesting, weeding, carrying nursery stock, repotting plants, pruning or watering.

Who is a handler? A handler is anyone who is:

  1. Employed (including self-employed) in exchange for a salary or wages or other monetary compensation by an agricultural establishment or a commercial pesticide handling establishment that uses pesticides in the production of agricultural plants, and
  2. Doing any of the following tasks:
    • Mixing, loading, transferring, applying or disposing of pesticides,
    • Handling opened containers of pesticides; emptying, triple-rinsing, or cleaning pesticide containers according to pesticide product labeling instructions; or disposing of pesticide containers that have not been cleaned,
    • Acting as a flagger,
    • Cleaning, adjusting, handling or repairing the parts of mixing, loading, or application equipment that may contain pesticide residues,
    • Assisting with the application of pesticides, including incorporating the pesticide into the soil after the application has occurred, or dipping plant cuttings in rooting hormones that are registered pesticides,
    • Entering a greenhouse or other enclosed space after application and before the inhalation exposure level listed on the pesticide product labeling has been reached or any ventilation criteria established by WPS (Chapter 3, Table 1. Entry Restrictions During Enclosed Space Production Pesticide Applications) or on the pesticide product labeling has been met to:
      • Operate ventilation equipment,
      • Adjust or remove coverings, such as tarps used in fumigation, or
      • Check air pesticide concentration levels
    • Entering a treated area outdoors after application of any soil fumigant to adjust or remove soil coverings, such as tarps, or
    • Performing tasks as a crop advisor:
      • During any pesticide application,
      • During any restricted-entry interval, or
      • Before any inhalation exposure level listed on the pesticide product labeling has been reached or any ventilation criteria established by WPS (Chapter 3, Table 1. Entry Restrictions During Enclosed Space Production Pesticide Applications) or on the pesticide product labeling has been met.

Handlers who are currently certified as applicators of restricted-use pesticides must be given all of the WPS handler protections, except that they do not need to receive WPS training.

Who is a Crop Advisor?  A crop advisor is any person who assesses pest numbers, damage, pesticide distribution, or the status or requirements of agricultural plants. A crop advisor may be a worker or handler under the WPS depending on when the crop advising task is done:

  • If crop advising tasks are done during a pesticide application or while the REI is in effect, the crop advisor is a handler under WPS.
  • If crop advising tasks are done after the REI has expired, but is within the 30 days of the expiration of the REI, the crop advisor is a worker under WPS. See Chapter 6: Exemption and Exceptions for additional requirement for crop advisors.

What are the WPS Protections?

WPS ensures that agricultural employees are informed about and protected from exposure to pesticides through the following enhanced protections:

Requirements to inform employees of pesticide exposure:

  • Pesticide safety training for workers and handlers.
  • Pesticide safety information — basic safety concepts (on the poster or otherwise displayed) available at the central location and some decontamination sites.
  • Pesticide application and hazard information (SDS) and access to the information — centrally-located pesticide application information and safety data sheets (SDS) in an area accessible to workers and handlers. This information must be kept for 2 years on the establishment and must be provided to the employee, medical personnel or the employee’s designated representative upon request.
  • Notify workers about treated areas by posting signs or providing oral notification to avoid inadvertent pesticide exposures.
  • Information exchange between commercial pesticide handler employers and agricultural employers.

Requirements to protect employees from pesticide exposure:

  • Exclude workers and others from areas being treated with pesticides.
  • Exclude workers and others from the application exclusion zone (AEZ) within the boundaries of the agricultural establishment during pesticide applications.
  • Exclude workers from areas that remain under a restricted-entry interval (REI), with narrow exceptions.
  • Ensure a pesticide handler or an early-entry worker (one that enters a treated site prior to the expiration of the REI) be a minimum of 18 years old.
  • Prohibit handlers from applying a pesticide in a way that will expose workers or other persons.
  • Protect handlers during handling tasks including monitoring while handling highly toxic pesticides.
  • Provide, maintain and ensure the correct use of personal protective equipment (PPE) including enhanced protections for the use of respirators.
  • Protect early-entry workers who are doing permitted tasks in treated areas during a REI, including special instructions and duties related to correct use of PPE.

In addition, the WPS requires handlers to:

  • Apply pesticides in a way that will not expose workers or other persons.
  • Suspend applications if anyone, other than a trained and equipped handler involved with the application, is in the AEZ during a pesticide application (which may be outside the establishment’s property boundary).
  • Wear PPE specified on the pesticide product labeling.

Requirements to mitigate employee exposure to pesticides:

  • Decontamination supplies such as specific amounts of water for workers and handlers along with soap and towels for routine washing and emergency decontamination.
  • Eyewash water for handlers using pesticides requiring protective eyewear.
  • Emergency assistance by making transportation available to a medical care facility if an agricultural worker or handler may have been poisoned or injured by a pesticide, and providing information about the pesticide(s) to which the person may have been exposed to.