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Brief
History of the Worker
Protection Standard
In 1974, EPA promulgated
the regulations found at 40 CFR, Part 170 pursuant to its authority
under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA).
That part, entitled "Worker Protection Standards for Agricultural
Pesticides", dealt only with the pesticide-related occupational
safety and health of farm workers who perform hand labor task after
ground, aerial or other types of pesticide applications. Part 170
consisted of four basic requirements:
-
A prohibition against
spraying workers and other persons
-
A general reentry
interval for all agricultural pesticides prohibiting reentry
into treated fields until the spray had dried or the dust had
settled and longer intervals for 12 specific pesticides
-
A requirement for
protective clothing for any worker who had to reenter treated
fields before the specific reentry period had expired
-
A requirement for
"appropriate and timely" warnings.
EPA conducted an agency
review of 40 CFR, Part 170 in 1983 and concluded that the regulations
were inadequate to protect agricultural workers. The review revealed
concerns about enforceability and coverage and cited continuing
reports of worker poisoning. EPA set up an Advisory Committee consisting
of representatives of farm worker unions, health care providers,
Health and Agricultural agencies, EPA and other federal agencies.
During July and August
of 1988, EPA held several public meetings, mostly in agricultural
areas of the country, to explain the proposed rules, answer questions
and take comments on WPS. After a careful review and analysis of
the comments and data in the record, the agency revised the 40 CFR
by adding Part 156 Subpart K (Labeling Requirements for Pesticides
and Devices). The provisions in the revised Worker Protection Standard
are directed toward the working conditions of two types of employees:
those who handle agricultural pesticides (mix, load, apply, clean
or repair equipment, and act as flaggers, etc.) And those who perform
tasks related to the cultivation and harvesting of plants on farms,
forests, nurseries and greenhouses. The final Rule was effective
August 21, 1992. EPA allowed state and lead agencies to do compliance
assistance from 1995 to 1998. EPA is now demanding that state lead
agencies do more compliance enforcement of the Worker Protection
Standard.
The purpose of the EPA
Worker Protection Standard is to: (1) Eliminate or reduce exposures
to pesticides; (2) Mitigate exposures that occur; and (3) Inform
employees about the hazard of pesticides.
This regulation covers
pesticides that are used in production of agricultural plants on
farms, forests, nurseries and greenhouses. The Worker Protection
Standard requires one to take measures to reduce the risk of pesticide
related illness and injury if one uses such pesticides or employ
worker or pesticide handlers who are exposed to pesticides.
If you are an agricultural
pesticide user or an employer of agricultural workers and handlers,
the Worker Protection Standard requires you to provide to your employees,
to yourself and others:
-
Information about
exposure to pesticides
-
Protection against
exposures to pesticides, and
-
Ways to mitigate exposures
to pesticides.
Information
To ensure that employees
will be informed about exposure to pesticides, the WPS requires:
-
Pesticide safety
training - for workers
and handlers,
-
Pesticide safety
poster - to be displayed
for workers and handlers,
-
Access to labeling
information - for pesticide
handlers and early-entry workers, and
-
Access to specific
information - a centrally
located Application List of pesticide treatments on the establishment.
Protection
To ensure that employees
will be protected from exposures to pesticides, the WPS requires
employers to:
-
prohibit handlers
from applying a pesticide in a way that will expose workers
or other persons,
-
exclude workers from
areas being treated with pesticides,
-
exclude workers from
areas that remain under a restricted-entry interval (REI), with
narrow exceptions,
-
protect early-entry
workers who are doing
permitted tasks in treated areas during an REI - requirements
include special instructions and duties related to correct use
of personal protective equipment (PPE),
-
notify workers
about treated areas so they can avoid inadvertent exposures,
and
-
protect handlers
during handling tasks -requirements
include monitoring while handling highly toxic pesticides and
duties related to correct use of PPE.
Mitigation
To mitigate pesticide
exposures that employees receive, the WPS requires:
-
Decontamination
sites - providing handlers
and workers an ample supply of water, soap, and towels for routing
washing and emergency decontamination,
-
Emergency assistance
- 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(2) to which the
person may have been exposed.
Address to Worker Protection
Standard: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/safety/index.htm
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