Last month, EPA released a Press Release with Proposed Changes to the Agriculture Worker Protection Standard. Some of the proposed changes include: stricter pesticide safety training requirements, mandatory posting of No Entry Signs, Minimum Age requirement, No Entry Buffer Areas, and PPE requirements to name a few. You can read the press release below and comment on the docket by using the hyperlink.
EPA Proposes New Safety Measures to
Protect Farm Workers from Pesticide Exposure
WASHINGTON —Today, the U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced proposed revisions to the
Worker Protection Standard in order to protect the nation’s two million farm
workers and their families from pesticide exposure.
“Today marks an important milestone for the
farm workers who plant, tend, and harvest the food that we put on our tables
each day,” said Gina McCarthy, EPA Administrator. “EPA’s revised Worker
Protection Standard will afford farm workers similar health protections to
those already enjoyed by workers in other jobs. Protecting our nation’s farm
workers from pesticide exposure is at the core of EPA’s work to ensure
environmental justice.”
EPA is proposing significant improvements to
worker training regarding the safe usage of pesticides, including how to
prevent and effectively treat pesticide exposure. Increased training and
signage will inform farm workers about the protections they are afforded under
the law and will help them protect themselves and their families from pesticide
exposure.
Workers and others near treated fields will
now be protected from pesticide overspray and fumes. In addition, EPA has
proposed that children under 16 be legally barred from handling all pesticides,
with an exemption for family farms. These revisions protect workers while
ensuring agricultural productivity and preserving the traditions of family
farms.
This proposal represents more than a decade
of extensive stakeholder input by federal and state partners and from across
the agricultural community including farm workers, farmers, and industry on the
current EPA Worker Protection Standard (WPS) for Agricultural Pesticides first
established in 1992.
For more information on the EPA’s Proposed
Worker Protection Standard: http://www.epa.gov/oppfead1/safety/workers/proposed/index.html
R042
.jpg)