Pesticide Handling Decisions
For any pesticide handling or application activity, you must decide how to ensure the safety of yourself, others, and the environment.
Personal Safety Considerations
Make safety one of your first concerns every time you handle pesticides. You can prevent many pesticide accidents and reduce the severity of others by asking yourself these basic safety questions:
Have I Read the Label?
Always read the pesticide label before you open a pesticide container or begin any pesticide handling activity. Pesticide labeling contains, 1) precautions and instructions that you must follow in order to use the product safely and appropriately, and 2) very specific information that concerns the task you plan to do. Be sure you understand everything you need to know about the pesticide product before you are exposed to it.
How Can I Avoid Exposure to Pesticides?
- Always keep personal clothing, food, drinks, chewing gum, tobacco products, and other belongings away from where pesticides are stored or handled. They could become contaminated and poison or injure you when you use them.
- When you take a break, wash your gloves on the outside, remove your gloves, and wash your hands and face thoroughly. Then you can safely chew gum, eat, drink, or smoke, if you wish.
- Take the time to wash your hands thoroughly before using the toilet, and be careful not to contaminate yourself from pesticides that may be on the outside of your clothing.
- Protect yourself not only during mixing, loading, and application, but also during spill cleanup, repairing or maintaining equipment, and when transporting, storing, or disposing of pesticide containers.
What Personal Protective Equipment Is Needed?
You must use the personal protective equipment that the labeling requires. Make sure that the personal protective equipment is clean and in good operating condition. Put on and remove the equipment carefully so that you will not come in contact with any pesticides that may be on the outside of it.
Is the Equipment Ready and Safe?
Make sure that you have all the equipment you need and that it is clean and in good operating condition. Make sure you know how to operate the equipment safely and correctly. Do not allow children, pets, or unauthorized people to touch the equipment. If they are injured or poisoned, you are responsible.
Am I Avoiding the Accidental Spread of Pesticides?
You may transfer pesticides to objects, people, and animals when you touch them with gloves that you wore while handling pesticides. When you sit in your car or on a chair while wearing your pesticide-handling outfit, you may leave pesticides behind. If you step into your office or home to answer the telephone or use the toilet, you may leave pesticides on surfaces.
Any time you take home or wear home your work clothing, personal protective equipment, the pesticides can rub off on carpeting, furniture, and laundry items. When you do not clean up a spill, no matter how small, other people or animals may get pesticide on themselves without knowing they are being exposed. Pesticides that you spread may harm whoever or whatever touches them.
Am I Prepared for Emergencies?
Before you begin any pesticide handling activity, be sure you are prepared to deal with emergencies such as spills, injuries, and poisonings. Your emergency supplies should include at least:
- Personal decontamination equipment -- Keep plenty of clean water, detergent, and paper towels nearby in a protected container to allow for fast decontamination in an emergency. Have an extra coverall-type garment nearby in case clothing becomes soaked or saturated with pesticide and must be removed.
- First aid equipment -- Have a well-stocked first aid kit on hand. It should include a plastic eyewash dispenser that has a gentle flushing action.
- Spill cleanup equipment -- Keep a spill cleanup kit on hand at all times. The kit should contain not only all the items needed for prompt and complete spill cleanup, but also personal protective equipment to protect you while you are dealing with the spill.
Know who to call in a medical emergency, and be familiar with the signs and symptoms of poisoning caused by the pesticides you handle. In a poisoning emergency, get the person out of the exposure at once, quickly summon medical assistance, and provide first aid.
Are People and Animals Out of the Area?
You have the legal responsibility to make sure that no one is overexposed to pesticides that you are handling. Always warn workers, supervisors, and any other people who may be near the application about which sites you plan to treat and how long they must stay out of those sites.
Pre-Application Decisions
Choice of Pesticide
One of the first things you must decide is which pesticide to use. The certified applicator for your company has the knowledge to make that decision. He has selected the safest and most effective pesticide for the job.
Application Site
Some formulations are more likely than others to cause unwanted harm to surfaces, plants, and animals in the application site. Emulsifiable concentrates, for example, tend to pit or stain some surfaces, are easily absorbed through the skin of some animals, and may injure some plants. Dusts and powders are likely to leave a visible residue that may be unacceptable.
Pesticide Movement
Consider whether runoff or air movements are likely to carry the pesticide out of the application site.
Personal Safety
Some pesticide formulations are more hazardous to people than others. Emulsifiable concentrates and ultra-low-volume concentrates often contain solvents that are hazardous themselves or that allow the pesticide to pass through the skin more quickly. Aerosols are easily inhaled. Wear appropriate protective equipment to protect yourself from pesticides.
Scheduling Pesticide Applications
Each pesticide application involves a different set of conditions. Your responsibility is to assess the conditions and decide when to apply the pesticide and whether to take any special precautions.
Avoid Heat Stress
Several factors work together to cause heat stress. Before you begin a pesticide handling task, think about whether any of these factors are likely to present a problem. Consider what adjustments you may need to make in the task itself or in the workplace conditions, including:
- heat factors -- temperature, humidity, air movement, and sunlight
- workload
- personal protective equipment
- water
Authors:
Philip G. Koehler, University of Florida
Robert A. Belmont, Florida Pest Control Association
This file is part of the UF/IFAS Basic Pesticide Training manual (SM-59) which is intended to provide intermediate training to pest control operators. The manual was adapted from a larger manual, Applying Pesticides Properly, which was developed by Ohio State University in cooperation with the Cooperative Extension Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Office of Pesticide Programs, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Published: March, 1998
