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CHAPTER 12 PESTICIDE APPLICATION

Legislation

Before looking at COSHH for pesticides in detail, I would like to review pesticide legislation and application techniques and suggest several approaches which 'at a stroke' could reduce reduce some of the risks substantially.

Firstly just to recap on spray application:

The Law states that everyone who sprays must

1. attend a course of adequate instruction & guidance
2. be suparvised until competence is attaned
3. be competent
4. keep themselves up-to-date with legislation modern techniques.

All of the is done usually by attending an LANTRA Course or equivalent, on Safe Use of Pesticides and Applications Techniques and passing the appropriate NPTC Proficiency Tests.

There are those who have to be tested as competent and have to sit a NPTC Test :

1. those born after 31/12/64 who spray unsupervised
2. all contractors
3. those who instruct others on spraying
4. those who supervise operators who do not hold a certificate

The so called 'grandfather clause' is only applicable to those who

1. born before 31/12/64
   • AND
2. who spray on land owned or controlled by themselves or their employer
   • AND WHO DO NOT
3. give instructions or supervise others spraying.

There has been an amendment to the Pesticide Regulations which include two very important points

Firstly the paragraph in the consent referring to instruction and training now reads:

• No person shall use a pesticide, or give instructions to others on the use of a pesticide in the course of business or employment, unless he has received adequate instruction and guidance in the in the safe and humane use of pesticides and is competent for the duties he is called on to perform.

This now means that everyone involved with pesticides whether advising, buying or using must have attended a course of adequate instruction and guidance and be competent.

Many Head Greenkeepers and Head Groundsmen have been hiding behind the grandfather clause for the last 12 years - now you will have to take action!!

If you have not attended any of the LANTRA Pesticide Courses or equivalent in the past 12 years, and do not have Proficiency Test Certificates, there is a BASIS Course particularly designed for Parks Managers, Head Greenkeepers and Head Groundsmen called the BASIS Amenity Pest Management - a two to three day course, end-tested, which would allow the Manager to comply with this requirement.

The other change in the Consent concerns drift, run-off and leaching.

• Any person who uses a pesticide shall confine the pesticide to the land, crop, structure, material or other area intended to be treated.

This appears to have gone though without a softening of the wording - there is no 'reasonably practicable' - it is absolute. This means that drift out of the target area is against the law - so too is leaching and run-off - the exact interpretation of this will only be proved in a court of law - is one drop of spray drift breaking the law? or is two drops?

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