California Proposes Restrictions on Chlorpyrifos

photo credit: Pacific Northwest Agricultural Health and Safety Center; Creative Commons license

photo credit: Pacific Northwest Agricultural Health and Safety Center; Creative Commons license

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) is proposing to make all pesticide products containing the active ingredient chlorpyrifos, used to produce an agricultural commodity, a California restricted material.

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This would mean only trained, licensed professionals who have a permit from a local county agricultural commissioner (CAC) would be able to use these products. The CAC can place further conditions on use through the permit.

“The proposed regulation is a very important step to further safeguard the people and environment of California”, said DPR Director Brian Leahy. “Chlorpyrifos is one of the most widely used old organophosphate classes of pesticides. This key action is intended to reduce the widespread use of chlorpyrifos and help limit unintended exposures to the public.”

Chlorpyrifos is used to control pests that threaten more than 60 different crops, including alfalfa, walnuts, oranges, cotton, and grapes. The product, which was introduced by Dow in 1965, is sold under many trade names including Dursban and Lorsban. It acts on the nervous system of insects by inhibiting acetylcholinesterase. “However, once it is applied to the field it has a propensity to move from the site of application via air and water,” DPR said in a statement.

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The proposed regulation would affect about 30 products used in agriculture.

Since 2004, between 1 million and 1 million pounds of chlorpyrifos has been applied each year in California. DPR’s proposed regulation would mean that all chlorpyrifos products registered for agricultural production use must adhere to the standard requirements for all California restricted materials. This means:

  • Applications must be made or supervised by a certified applicator.
  • Purchase, possession, or use requires the property operator to obtain a permit from the county agricultural commissioner.
  • Businesses require a recommendation from a DPR licensed pest control adviser.

DPR will begin a 45-day comment period to allow public input on the proposed regulation beginning Sept. 26, 2014. For details see: www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/legbills/rulepkgs.htm

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