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Chemical Control

Personal Protective Equipment [PPE]

 Compliance

  • While an employer is required by law to provide PPE, the individual is required by law to wear PPE listed on pesticide label 

  • Employers are responsible for replacing any defective PPE

  • The minimum PPE requirements are specified by the pesticide label and must be followed

  • Please note: PPE requirements may differ between herbicides as well as between mixing and application of the same herbicide

Safety

Everyone involved in a pesticide field operation is at risk of exposure to hazardous chemicals, so please exercise extreme caution and stay alert. PPE addresses the risk to one’s eyes/face, feet, hands, legs and body/other, when handling and applying herbicides. Make sure to always refer to the label for specific safety and use requirements.

Some labels may direct you to wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after handling and before eating, drinking, using the restroom, or any other similar activity. Be aware of the label requirements and regardless, effectively cleaning your hands after handing any herbicide and before eating, etc., is a strong safety practice.

General How To’s

The minimum required PPE, as specified by the pesticide label, is to be worn at all times when handling and/or applying herbicides.

Common PPE includes nitrile gloves, long-sleeved shirt, long pants, closed-toed shoes, safety glasses. 

  • Use chemical resistant gloves! Never wear cotton or leather gloves, they absorb chemicals. Check Herbicide labels as they will include material and thickness requirements for gloves.

  • PPE are meant to be worn as the outermost layer some recommendations include keep pants over boots and wear loose-fitting clothes

  • Unless application method requires otherwise, sleeves are best tucked into gloves

  • Additional PPE may be worn as long as it does not cause additional safety concerns and can be worn with comfort and ease 

 

Coveralls provide extra protection for the applicator and over their work clothes. Caution is advised when using coveralls as they are not made out of breathable material and the user may be at risk of overheating, especially if using them under hot conditions. 

 

Respirators provide additional protection when doing foliar sprays., however their use requires approval by a medical expert to confirm that the applicator is healthy enough to use it safely. As there are numerous types of respirators, varying in degree of protection efficacy (i.e. droplet size), make sure you using a respirator that is appropriate to protect you from the type of herbicide application you are conducting. Additionally, they need to be properly fitted to the applicator.

 

Respirator Fitting

Oʻahu: Safety Systems and Signs–Product and Sign Shop 

663 Kakoi St, Honolulu, HI 96819

(808) 847-4017 (Sales inquiries)

 

Kauaʻi:
Maui:
Hawaiʻi Island:

Note that outer surfaces of herbicide containers are considered contaminated and as such, gloves should be worn when moving pesticide containers. Furthermore, gloves should be removed before touching non-herbicide objects to prevent contamination. Washing gloved hands with soap before removal, or turning one glove inside out, with the other glove tucked inside (so outward facing surfaces of both gloves are touching) are both ways to minimize contamination from glove to clean objects.

Other resources: 

  • HDOA Pest Test Study Guide—Unit 7 (PPE)

https://cms.ctahr.hawaii.edu/epp/Education/Study-Guide-Packets/APC-Core/APC-Unit7

  • Pesticide Envrionmental Stewardship—PPE (The Label and PPE, Selecting PPE, Components of PPE, Cleaning, Maintenance, Storage, and Disposal,NIOSH Presentations/Video training

https://pesticidestewardship.org/personal-protective-equipment/

PPE Requirements Quick Guide

Help us build this quick guide! Let us know your most commonly used, or any specialty, herbicides so we can add them to the quick guide reference below.

 

PPE requirements and restricted-entry interval (REI) for commonly used herbicides

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Herbicide Labels

Overview

Herbicide labels provide critical—required—information regarding safety and first aid, mixing, storage, cleaning, disposal and application (methods and targets) of any one herbicide. 

It is good practice to be familiar with the labels of the herbicides that you use, and any programmatic mixing, storage, cleaning, disposal and application instructions should reflect the requirements on the herbicide label.

For more information on reading herbicide labels, see Unit 2--Pesticide Labels of the Applying Pesticides Correctly: Guidelines for Private and Commercial Applicators from the HDOA RUP Applicator Certification Study Guide, developed by CTHAR Pesticides Extension Program.

Herbicide: Basic Handling, Mixing and Pouring

Planning

Prior to conducting an herbicide operation, all staff shall be briefed as to management goal, target weed species, location of herbicide operation, and safety. Be aware of weather conditions to enable effective decision making around starting and stopping an herbicide operation.

 

See Unit 8 to learn more about handling decisions. 

Safety

Use extreme caution when mixing herbicides! The most dangerous part of applying herbicide is handling concentrated chemicals. Dermal exposure to a small amount of a concentrated herbicide can be equivalent to the exposure received after a full day of working in a treated field. 

 

Properly bandage or protect open cuts or abrasions before handling herbicides and wash hands with soap and water after handling and before eating, drinking, using the restroom or any other similar activity.

 

Labels

Read herbicide labels before mixing. Labels provide important regulatory and safety information regarding proper mixing of any given herbicide. Be sure to derive any mixing instruction reference guides from the appropriate herbicide label. See Herbicide Labels section in this document for more information

 

PPE

PPE is to be worn always when handling pesticides. The minimum PPE requirements are specified by the pesticide label and must be followed. Failure to comply with these requirements is a violation of the law. Some product labels require the use of additional PPE and eye protection when working with pesticide concentrate. See the PPE section of this document for more detail. And remember, the outer surfaces of herbicide containers are considered contaminated and are best handled wearing gloves.

 

Equipment Maintenance

Be aware of the integrity of your equipment and never use damaged equipment or out of date materials. Always check equipment and fittings for leaks and calibrate with water before using herbicides. Evaluating the status of herbicide application and containment equipment can easily be done during decon—be sure to render damaged equipment unusable to prevent future use if immediate disposal is not feasible. This can include tearing Ziplocks or gloves with holes, flagging other secondary containment (i.e. dry bags). Mark herbicide containers, with flagging or by writing directly on the container with messages such as “broken”, “to toss” etc.

 

Consider developing a maintenance schedule for all herbicide equipment, such as backpack sprayers and handpumps, to ensure the equipment stays in working order. 

 

Always exercise care when handling and operating herbicide and herbicide deployment equipment. These materials are costly to repair or replace and need to be in excellent working condition in order for safe operations.

 

Mixing 

Designated Mixing Areas

Whether at the base yard or in the field, establish a mixing area. Herbicides should be mixed only in pre-designated areas–preferably near the storage site. Mixing should occur in a well-ventilated area, with a clear, level surface that is low-traffic and away from food or laundry. 

 

Pouring and mixing should be done prior to going into the field whenever possible. Exceptions to this include but are not limited to mixing solutions for power, backpack, hand, or pump sprayers in the field, or herbicide to be used during camp trips. Never mix, load, or clean equipment near ponds, streams, wells, or drainage ditches.

 

Consider using at least two personnel for mixing of pesticides. This may not always be necessary, or feasible, but can facilitate safe mixing and minimize decontamination of non-herbicide objects. Field mixing should be completed as near the treatment site(s) as possible, but away from non-target plants and water sources. For example, sites should have relatively few native or other desirable species and not be susceptible to erosion or runoff. Preferably, they are rarely–if ever–visited by the public. In addition, mixing sites should provide easy access for containment and clean-up of spills. Be aware of spill response procedures to effectively react to accidental spills. See Spill Response and Spill Kits for more information.

PPE
Basic Handeling, Mixing and Pouring
Labels

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Dept. of Natural Resources & Environmental Management  | University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa  |  1910 East-West Rd 101, Honolulu, HI 96822

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