OSHA news release. The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division (Oregon OSHA) has extended the public comment period until Jan. 31 on rules to protect farmworkers and their families from pesticide drift. The rules are part of the agency’s updates to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Worker Protection Standard. At issue is the need to protect workers and their families living on farms from the risk of pesticide spray illegally drifting to their homes when the wind picks up. The EPA’s rule requires workers to stay at least 100 feet away from a pesticide applicator while spraying is happening. Oregon OSHA proposes measures that exceed EPA requirements in several ways, while also allowing workers to shelter in place when pesticides that do not present a respiratory hazard are used. Oregon OSHA’s rule proposals include: * For pesticides that require applicators to use respirators, evacuation would be required to 150 feet — 50 feet more than the EPA rule. * The evacuation would last at least 15 minutes after the spray equipment moved on, rather than end immediately, as is the case with the EPA rule. * For all pesticide applications, the rule would require doors, windows, and air intakes be closed before evacuation or sheltering in place. During evacuation, the EPA rule does not include such requirements. * The rule would require protection of personal or household items from potential contamination, as well as suitable storage for shoes and boots to prevent the tracking of pesticides into housing. The EPA rule includes no such requirements. Public comment on the proposed rules was scheduled to end Dec. 15, but has been extended through Jan. 31.
