Why is Pest Control so Highly Regulated?
From the outside looking in, many people don’t realize how highly regulated the pest control industry has become over the last 10 years. Everything from applying pesticides, label reading, continuing education, to disposing of pesticide containers and pesticide reporting are just few things that we are under the microscope for on a daily basis. All of these regulations have a purpose, and benefit the general public as well as the environment. In today’s blog post we will speak about the reasoning behind many of the basic regulations.
- Label Reading. Pesticide labels are a must read for every single applicatorprior to applying pesticides. This label will explain to you how the chemical works, the target insects, how much to tank mix ( or how much to apply ), where you can and cannot apply, what is contained in the chemical, how to dispose of the empty container, application information and many more. Many pest control professionals do not bother to read the labels which is a big no-no. If you apply any pesticide against its labeling directions you can be fined and sometimes arrested. Here at Northeastern Exterminating we encourage all of our techs to read labels once a week during lunch because these labels are always changing. What might have been on the label last week, could have changed this week. The most important part of the label will explain what steps need to be taken if a human or pet has been in direct skin contact with the pesticide. Knowledge of the pesticide label is one of the most parts of pest control.
- Pesticide Reporting. In NYS after you finish every account you must log in a book, or electronic device all of the pesticide information you have just applied. After the application, as a tech, you must log the date, time, pesticide,. pesticide percentage, EPA registration number, target pest,and location of application. Failure to do so can lead to a fine. The reasoning behind this is because yearly, the technicians must send the reporting to the states Department of Environmental Conservation. They will check to see if everything is properly applied and mixed. If there is a complaint made by a customer, the DEC will look at your log to see what you applied at this particular clients home.
- Continuing Education. As a Certified Applicator you must complete continuing education credits in your licensed category. Failure to do so can result in loss of your license. The reason that these continuing education classes are important are to update you on new scientific information about insects. They also may inform you of new rules and regulations in your jurisdiction.
- Properly Disposing of Empty Containers. As we spoke about in label reading, the label lists the manner the container should be disposed. This could be triple washing the container, puncturing it, and disposing in a PROPER facility for pesticides and chemicals. Failure to do so can lead to a fine. This is also important to protect the environment. Many exterminators will throw raw, undiluted pesticides down the drain and this can be linked to many current problems in our oceans. Always do the right thing, we need to save this planet for generations to come!
- Traveling with pesticides. When your traveling in a vehicle with pesticide products there are some rules you must follow. Incase of a fire you must have a fire extinguisher handy. In-case of small spills you should carry EZ-Zorb which will absorb any small spills that happen while on the job. If you have a large chemical spill you should always call your local spill response unit. We must also put a sign on the out side of the vehicle noting that there are pesticides in the vehicle . Incase of accident, the first responders must know that there are pesticides and chemicals inside the vehicle.
In a future blog, we will list more regulations that you can learn about. We are just touching on the regulations and reasoning behind them. Sometimes us pest control professionals feel as if we are over regulated but the fact of the matter is that these laws are made for a reason. They protect our families, environment, and generations to come. If you have any questions about this blog post please send us an email at [email protected] or comment below.
