Pesticide Safety, Toxicity and First Aid
About 6 of every 50 questions on each state's practice exam (Alaska Core, Alabama General Standards, California Laws, Regulations and Basic Principles, Delaware Core, Florida Core, Georgia General Standards, Idaho Core Competency, Illinois General Standards, Illinois General Standards (Structural), Kansas General Exam, Louisiana General Standards, Louisiana Structural General Standards, Massachusetts Core, Maine Commercial Core, Missouri CORE, Montana Core, North Carolina Core, New Jersey Core, Nevada Core and Laws, New York Core, Ohio Commercial Core, Pennsylvania Core, Rhode Island Commercial Licensing, Texas General Standards (Agricultural), Texas General Standards (Structural), Virginia Core, Vermont Core, Washington Laws and Safety and West Virginia Core) come from this topic.
Sources checked
What to know
Risk from a pesticide depends on both its toxicity and the amount of exposure, and skin contact is the most common way exposure happens. A lower LD50 or LC50 means a more toxic product; the signal word reflects the product's acute toxicity, and an oral LD50 above 50 through 500 mg/kg is Toxicity Category II. Organophosphates and carbamates inhibit cholinesterase, and early organophosphate poisoning often brings headache, nausea, dizziness, sweating and salivation, and pinpoint pupils are often a helpful clue. Know EPA's standard first aid steps (rinse eyes or skin 15 to 20 minutes, move to fresh air, do not induce vomiting unless a poison control center or doctor says to, keep the label at hand, call 1-800-222-1222). Under the WPS, handler employers must supply 3 gallons of decontamination water per handler with soap, single-use towels and a clean change of clothing, provide eyeflush water when eyewear is required, wash contaminated PPE separately, replace vapor cartridges at the first odor, and check on skull-and-crossbones handlers at least every two hours.
Where it comes from
- EPA, Assessing Human Health Risk from Pesticides
- Ohio State University Extension, Pesticide Exposure (AEX-591.4.1)
- 40 CFR § 156.62
- EPA Label Review Manual, Ch. 7 Precautionary Statements
- EPA, Recognition and Management of Pesticide Poisonings, 6th ed., Ch. 5 Organophosphates
- 40 CFR § 170.505
- 40 CFR § 170.507
- 40 CFR § 170.509
Try a practice question
Product A is highly toxic but is loaded through a closed system by a handler in full label PPE. Product B is much less toxic but is mixed by hand without gloves. Which statement is most accurate?
- AProduct A is always the riskier one because its LD50 is lower
- BProduct B carries no risk because its toxicity is low
- CRisk is set by the signal word alone, so A is riskier
- DRisk reflects toxicity and exposure, so B can still be risky
Show the answer
Risk reflects toxicity and exposure, so B can still be risky. EPA describes risk as toxicity multiplied by exposure. Careless handling of a low-toxicity product raises exposure, while closed systems and PPE cut exposure to a toxic one.
EPA, Assessing Human Health Risk from Pesticides