Pesticide Applicator Training Policy
Based on guidance from the Wisconsin Department of
Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) and DNR's policy in Manual
Code 4230.1:
Use pesticides only after receiving appropriate training or
commercial (not for hire) applicator certification and licensing from the
Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). Certification
must be current. The following pesticide-use training guidelines apply:
- Restricted use pesticides can only be applied by DATCP
certified personnel with training in a relevant commercial applicator
category.
- Pesticide application in aquatic environments requires
DATCP training certification.[1]
- Except for applications in aquatic environments, DNR
staff (including volunteers) may apply general use pesticides on DNR land even
though they are not DATCP certified, but they must be working under direction
of someone who is. The certified personnel should be aware of the pesticide
use but does not need to be in work status at the time of the application or
be present at the site of the application. Designated certified personnel are
responsible for assuring that general use pesticide applicators are given
instructions for responsible and safe usage, clean-up and storage procedures,
including necessary Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
- Wisconsin DNR staff may provide information and
prescribe products consistent with pesticide labels to others including
private landowners even if the DNR staff have not received DATCP pesticide
certification.
- DNR staff that direct actual pesticide application on
non-DNR land (e.g. applying product or requiring someone to use a specific
product for cost-sharing approval) must be DATCP certified even for general
use products.
- State regulations also require that pesticide
applicators be DATCP certified if they apply or direct the use of pesticides
on a for-hire basis, pesticides in public schools or on school grounds, or
pesticides that contain metam sodium.
Minimizing Use of Pesticides
DNR personnel should:
- Integrate physical or biological methods
into control programs wherever practical to minimize chemical use.
- Choose non-chemical controls whenever
practical.
- Select the least hazardous chemical
whenever two or more would be effective and non-chemical alternatives are not
practical.
- If a product label allows for lower
concentrations, use the least amount of pesticide that is effective in the
applicable situation.
Integrated Pest Management (IPM) programs should also
encourage practices that prevent or avoid pest
occurrence where practical. Alternatives to chemical pest control and prevention
or avoidance techniques are available in handbooks (such as the
DNR Silviculture Handbook) and through Internet search tools. A couple
Internet examples:
FSC Prohibited Pesticide
Considerations
Other than intensive use properties like forest nurseries,
fish hatcheries, share crop fields, boat landings, communications tower sites
and administrative facilities, most DNR owned and managed land participates in
third-party forest certification. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is one of
the independent standards Wisconsin DNR is certified to. Accordingly, DNR land
managers need to be aware that
FSC classifies some pesticides "highly hazardous" due to concern over
environmental persistence or impacts on non-target species. Although some FSC
"highly hazardous" pesticides may be legal to use in Wisconsin (including a
number of general use products that are readily available in retail outlets and
restricted-use products available to licensed applicators), FSC-listed
pesticides shall not be prescribed or applied on FSC certified DNR lands or
Managed Forest Law Group land that is FSC certified. An exception allowing use
on certified land would be available only if DNR received an FSC-approved
derogation. Intensive use areas like nurseries and fish hatcheries that are not
FSC certified need not be concerned with the
FSC-prohibited chemical list.
Knowing what commercial products contain FSC-banned chemicals
can be challenging. You can use a web database provided by the
Pesticide Action Network of North America to determine if any products you
are considering are affected.
To use this tool:
- Enter the chemical name (copy and paste
from the
FSC list) and click "search"
- Under the chemical name, click "Details"
- On the new page, scroll down to "View
U.S. Products" (but first click the button for "currently registered
products"). You'll be presented with all the trade name products in the US
market that contain the chemical.
You can also search on the
trade name of a product as it appears on a commercial package and check to
see if it contains any of the FSC prohibited chemicals.
You can also
search for approved pesticides in the state by pesticide name, active
ingredient, pest, and other means.
Handling, Storage and Disposal of
Pesticides
- According to federal regulations, the
pesticide label is the law in which to follow for the proper use of each
product.
- Substitute low hazard materials whenever
possible.
- Obtain pesticides only in quantities
necessary for planned activities in order to minimize the amount and duration
of storage. DNR may contract for services in lieu of staff use/storage
whenever practical.
- Protect original labels on the container
from damage or destruction and keep them in readable condition. Identify date
of purchase, ownership, and if pertinent, date of repackaging.
- Store materials appropriately (a) to
prevent hazard to persons, property and wildlife, including during accidental
spillage; and (b) at locations that are secure from access by children or the
general public.
- Separate pesticide storage areas
adequately from food, feed, seed, drugs, plants, and other materials so as to
prevent contamination through volatilization, spills, or other causes. Any
outdoor storage must be within a fenced or walled enclosure.
- Store, use, and clean up materials in
compliance with instructions on the product label and the Material Safety Data
Sheet (MSDS). Extremely hazardous substances, as identified by the Emergency
Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (also known as EPCRA), should not be
stored in quantities above the threshold planning quantity. A list of
extremely hazardous substances and threshold planning quantities can be found
on the
EPA Emergency Planning Website.
- Container rinsate must be applied or
disposed according to label directions.
- Obtain water for application equipment
in a manner that fully protects the source from backflow, back-siphoning,
overflow, leakage, spillage or any potential route of contamination.
- Inform any employee involved in usage,
storage, or clean up of these materials regarding the safety instructions and
precautions. Furnish appropriate personal protective equipment for these
activities.
- Pesticides should not be stored for more
than one year, unless it can be shown from the Annual DNR Pesticide Inventory
(4200-007) that the pesticide is being used.
- Department generated hazardous waste
must be stored, treated or disposed of through the Department of
Administration Statewide Hazardous Waste Contract at licensed hazardous waste
facilities. See MC 4831.1
Worker Protection Guidelines
Pesticide Use Approval
All chemical treatment projects must be reviewed by technical
and administrative personnel prior to application of the chemical.
[Note: The DNR approval process has been omitted here.]
Recordkeeping Requirements
As required in Manual Code 4230.1, ALL pesticide use on DNR
lands (or by DNR staff) must be reported. An online chemical use report form is
available at: [DNR link omitted here, but everyone applying pesticides should
keep a record of use.
DATCP provides a useful record form here.]
Pesticide Certification and
Licensing
Anyone in the state must be certified if they apply or direct
the use of:
- restricted-use pesticides
- pesticides on a for-hire basis
- pesticides in public schools or on
school grounds
- pesticides that contain metam sodium
- pesticides in aquatic environments
Wisconsin requires licenses or certification to be held by
commercial or private pesticide applicators, pesticide application businesses or
pesticide dealers that sell restricted-use pesticides. All pesticides sold and
used in Wisconsin must be licensed. Certification options are administered by
the
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.
Applicators become certified by taking an exam after receiving Pesticide
Applicator Training. Most DNR employees get one or more of the following
certifications:
Aquatic – Control of algae, plants, insects,
shellfish, fish, and fish parasites in waters of the state (such as lakes,
rivers, marshes, and ponds but not sewers, swimming pools, water treatment
plants, cooling towers, or water tanks for potable water supplies); Adult and
larva mosquito control in both aquatic and terrestrial sites.
Forestry – Forest Nurseries or Forests and Wild lands
(including grasslands and prairies that are not part of developed
residential/commercial land)
Right-of-way – Vegetation management along roadsides, fire
lanes, pipelines, railways, runways; under powerlines & around power stations;
along stream banks or drainage ditches to water's edge (or entire drainage ditch
when dry); Nature/hiking trails; Nonselective weed control in
right-of-way sites that do not cross property lines (e.g., substations, parking
lots, sidewalks, driveways), or to prepare ground at such sites for blacktop or
sidewalks, or selective or nonselective control in median strips;
Nonselective weed control in non-landscape industrial settings (e.g.,
lumberyards)
Turf and Landscape – Residential/commercial prairie/grassland;
Non-forested parts of campgrounds, parks; Trails through turf/ornamental areas;
Selective or nonselective weed control in any landscape (including fence lines)
more than 10 feet from a structure; Nonselective weed control within 10 feet of
a structure to remove habitat for structural pests; Nonselective weed control in
right-of-way sites that do not cross property lines (e.g., substations, parking
lots, sidewalks, driveways), or to prepare ground at such sites for blacktop or
sidewalks, or selective or nonselective control in median strips.
University of Wisconsin Pesticide
Applicator Training
The University of Wisconsin offers
Pesticide Applicator Training (PAT) through its Internet site. You can find
out which PAT category is best for you, download training manuals, register for
courses, watch
videos, etc.
Rare or Endangered Species Considerations
Federal and state listed endangered,
threatened and special concern species must be protected from pesticide use. The
federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
EPA's Endangered Species Pesticide Program continues to develop its
national program to protect federally endangered and threatened species from
pesticide harm while minimizing the economic impact to pesticide users. In
general, endangered (includes threatened) species are considered within the risk
assessments performed on pesticides before they are registered.
Where harm from a pesticide cannot be mitigated within the formulation or label
instructions, a reference to endangered species will appear on the label. The
user then needs to obtain the bulletin for the county he/she is operating in, if
such a bulletin exists, and follow the use limitations for products that might
harm the species. A map will indicate the areas that need protection.
In Wisconsin DATCP's
Endangered Species Habitat Program operates as an information and
negotiation arm to these laws that protect endangered and threatened species and
regulate pesticide (including herbicide) uses in Wisconsin. Pesticide users may
receive help with treatment locations, product planning, site and species
monitoring, etc.
Questions: Contact DATCP at 608-224-4538 or
Ursula.Petersen@wisconsin.gov.
WI endangered species laws treat plants and animals differently, and for
plants, deal with public and private lands differently. In general you may not
"take" (including kill) a state endangered or threatened animal anywhere in the
state, or an endangered or threatened plant on public lands, depending on the
activity involved. See the detailed laws below:
To determine if state endangered or threatened species are known on the land on
which pesticides are to be applied, consult the
WI Natural Heritage Inventory.
Contact DNR's NHI at 608-264-6057 or
Emily.Groh@wisconsin.gov.
Federally Listed (Endangered and Threatened) Species in WI
Canada lynx (T)
Dwarf lake iris (T)
Eastern massassauga rattlesnake (C)
Eastern prairie fringed orchid (T)
Fassett's locoweed (T)
Gray Wolf (T?)
Hine's emerald dragonfly (E)
Higgins' eye pearly mussel (E)
Karner blue butterfly (E)
Kirtland's Warbler (E)
Mead's milkweed (T)
Northern wild monkshood (T)
Piping Plover (E)
Pitcher's thistle (= dune thistle) (T)
Prairie bush clover (T)
Sheepnose mussel (C)
Spectaclecase mussel (C)
Whooping Crane (proposed T)
Winged mapleleaf mussel (E)
How to protect rare or endangered
species from pesticide injury
The best way to protect endangered and
threatened species from herbicide and other pesticide harm is to:
- Apply according to the pesticide label.
- Allow a non-treatment barrier between
listed species habitats and treatment sites.
- Insure that the pesticide being applied
does not move off-target by air (wind direction), water (runoff) or soil
movement.
- Do not make applications off-target by
assuming a wild area near your treatment site does not have natural values. It
may harbor listed or rare species including important wild pollinators.
- Also, see the publication
Herbicides in Native Habitat Management, a comparative guide and
explanation prepared by DATCP of ecological impacts of various pesticides.
Pesticide Spills
- Pesticide mixing and loading at the
following sites must be conducted over a spill containment surface (there are
limited exceptions) that meets state standards:
- Any site located within 100 feet of a
well or surface water.
- Any site at which more than 1,500 lbs.
of pesticide active ingredient are mixed or loaded in any calendar year.
- No person may clean or fill pesticide
equipment in waters of the state, or in any manner that may contaminate waters
of the state.
- A person who spills a pesticide must:
- Take immediate action to contain the
spill, recover the pesticide, and clean surfaces exposed to the pesticide.
Spilled pesticides may not be stored below ground level.
- Immediately report the spill to the
Department of Natural Resources, if the spill exceeds the relevant amount
specified in
Wisconsin Administrative Code chapter NR 706.
- The Department of Agriculture, Trade and
Consumer Protection (DATCP) may order a person to take corrective action to
recover a spill and minimize environmental contamination.
- A person must obtain a DATCP permit to
land spread soil contaminated with spilled pesticides.
- A person who takes appropriate
corrective action to recover a pesticide spill and minimize environmental
contamination may be entitled to reimbursement from DATCP (see
Wisconsin Administrative Code chapter ATCP 35). Spill cleanup payments are
financed by pesticide industry license surcharges.
Pesticide Regulations
Apply chemicals with strict adherence to the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) product label specifications, any applicable
requirements of
Chapter ATCP 29, Wis. Adm. Code (Pesticide Use and Control), Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) limitations regarding foodstuffs, and
Chapter NR 150 (Environmental Analysis and Review Procedures for Department
Actions), Wis. Adm. Code. Use equipment and methodologies prescribed on the
product label or the equipment instructions to prevent significant human or
environmental risk during or after application.
Other Pesticide Links
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