&EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Office of Enforcement & Compliance Assurance Washington, DC 20460 EPA 305-F-98-026a September 1998 www.epa.gov Ag Center Helping Agriculture Comply with. Environmental Requirements FOCUS ON Information Exchange Between Commercial Handlers and Growers - Part I The Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS) is a regulation issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992 and amended in 1995. It covers pesticides that are used in the production of agricultural plants on farms, forests, nurseries, and greenhouses. The WPS requires you to take steps to reduce the risk of pesticide'related illness and injury if you (I) use such pesticides, or (2) employ workers or pesticide handlers who are exposed to such pesticides. This fact sheet will help you understand how to comply with WPS requirements concerning the information that commercial handlers and their customers must provide to each other about pestidde'treated areas. Information provided by commercial handlers to growers Commercial pesticide handlers (custom applicators) must make sure that their customer-the operator of the farm, forest, nursery, or greenhouse-knows certain information about the pesticide before it is applied on the establishment. If the pesticide is not applied as scheduled, the customer must be informed of the corrected time and date of the application. Make the correction before the application takes place or as soon as practicable thereafter. Commercial pesticide handlers must inform their customers about: • the specific location and description of the area(s) on the agricultural establishment that are to be treated with a pesticide, ------- Supply tlie information before t/ie commercial t in • •: *.' '• -II rummer performs tosh ontheag establishment. time and date the pesticide is scheduled to be. applied, product name, EPA registration number, and active ingredient (s), restricted-entry interval for the pesticide, whether the pesticide labeling requires both treated-area posting and oral notification, and any other specific requirements on the pesticide labeling concerning protection of workers and other persons during or after application. Your customers-the operators of agricultural establishments-must have this information to protect their employees as required by the WPS. Information provided by growers to commercial handlers Operators of farms, forests, nurseries, and greenhouses must make sure that, whenever a commercial pesticide handler will be doing pesticide handling tasks (including tasks as a crop advisor) on their establishment, the commercial handler's employer knows specific information concerning treated areas on the agricultural establishment. Operators of agricultural establishments must provide the following information to the commercial pesticide handlers they hire: • Specific location and description of any areas on the agricultural establishment: - that may be treated with a pesticide or be under a restricted-entry interval while the commercial handler will be there, AND - jthat the commercial handlers may be in (or walk within 1/4 mile of). • Restrictions on entering those areas. v1'1 i";:. 'i; I1';:1 ' " I" ,, ;•'.', ':: :. :,::!::ti Operators of commercial pesticide handling establishments must have this information to protect their employees as required by the WPS. They must make sure that, whenever one of their handlers will be doing pesticide handling tasks (including tasks as a crop advisor) on an agricultural establishment, he or she is aware of the required information concerning pesticide-treated areas on the agricultural establishment. For example, if custom applicators are scheduled to use ground equipment to apply a pesticide on a farm, they need to be informed of any nearby areas on the farm that they should stay out of because the area has an REI in effect. Or if commercial crop advisors are Ag Center Fact Sheet Series Agrichemicals/WPS - Information Exchange 1 Page 2 ------- Agr (chemicals scheduled to scout in an area on a farm that remains under an REI, they need to be told what personal protective equipment they should wear while in that area. The Ag Center welcomes comments on this document and its other services. For more information You can get more facts about compliance by calling the Ag Center's toll-free number. Materials can be sent to you by fax or mail, or you can talk to an Ag Center representative. For a list of all publications available from the Ag Center, request document number 10001, "Ag Center Publications." National Agriculture Compliance Assistance Center 901 N. 5* Street Kansas City, KS 66 1 01 Toll-free: Internet: Fax: 1-888-663-2155 www.epa.gov/oeca/ag 913-551-7270 United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, DC 20460 Ag Center Fact Sheet Series Pages ------- !." jiiV1"! si" HO- 'Ki'l [ E'f •fl i ,16 !:i ':',•' ,": • : '..:"• fuM • ,'• T t • IS1'1 ;::;„,! ------- |