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                            ENGROSSED SENATE BILL 5009

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State of Washington              52nd Legislature             1991 Regular Session

 

By Senators Barr, Newhouse, Bailey, Anderson and Hansen.

 

Read first time January 14, 1991.  Referred to Committee on Agriculture & Water Resources.Changing record keeping and posting requirements for pesticide use.


     AN ACT Relating to pesticide posting and record keeping; amending RCW 17.21.100, 49.70.117, and 49.70.119; and declaring an emergency.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

 

     Sec. 1.  RCW 17.21.100 and 1989 c 380 s 39 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) ((Except as provided in subsection (7) of this section, pesticide)) Applicators licensed under the provisions of this chapter and all persons applying pesticides to more than one acre of agricultural land in a calendar year, including public entities engaged in roadside spraying of pesticides, shall keep all required records, and submit to the director any records requested by the director on a form prescribed by the director which shall include the following information:

     (a) The location of the land where the pesticide was applied.

     (b) The year, month, day and time the pesticide was applied.

     (c) The product name used on the registered label and the United States environmental protection agency registration number, if applicable, of the pesticide which was applied.

     (d) The crop or site to which the pesticide was applied.

     (e) The amount of pesticide applied per acre or other appropriate measure.

     (f) The concentration of pesticide that was applied.

     (g) The number of acres, or other appropriate measure, to which the pesticide was applied.

     (h) The licensed applicator's name, address, and telephone number and the name of the individual or individuals making the application.

     (i) The direction and estimated velocity of the wind at the time the pesticide was applied:  PROVIDED, That this subsection (i) shall not apply to applications of baits in bait stations and pesticide applications within structures.

     (j) Any other reasonable information required by the director.

     (2) Records shall be updated on the same day that a pesticide is applied.

     (3) Such records shall be kept for a period of seven years from the date of the application of the pesticide to which such records refer, and the director shall, upon request in writing, be furnished with a copy of such records forthwith by the licensee:  PROVIDED, That the director may require the submission of such records within thirty days of the application of any restricted use pesticide in prescribed areas controlling the use of such restricted use pesticide.

     (4) The pesticide records shall be readily available to:  The department; treating medical personnel initiating diagnostic testing or therapy for a patient with a suspected case of pesticide poisoning; the department of social and health services; the pesticide incident reporting and tracking panel; and, in the case of an industrial insurance claim filed under Title 51 RCW with the department of labor and industries, the employee or the employee's designated representative and the department of labor and industries.

     (5) If a request for information is made under subsection (4) of this section from an applicator referred to in subsection (1) of this section and the applicator refuses to provide a copy of the records, the department shall be notified of the request and the applicator's refusal.  Within seven working days, the department shall request that the applicator provide the department with all pertinent copies, except that in a medical emergency the request shall be made within two working days.  The applicator shall provide copies of the records to the department within twenty‑four hours after the department's request.

     (6) The department of agriculture and the department of labor and industries shall jointly adopt, by rule, ((one)) a form that satisfies the information requirements of this section and RCW 49.70.119.  Records ((kept)) submitted on the prescribed form under RCW 49.70.119 may be used to comply with this section.

     (((7) This section shall not apply to the owner or operator of a dairy farm with respect to his or her application of pesticides to the farm.))

 

     Sec. 2.  RCW 49.70.117 and 1989 c 380 s 76 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) If a pesticide having a reentry interval of greater than twenty‑four hours is applied to a labor‑intensive agricultural crop, the pesticide‑treated area shall be posted with warning signs in accordance with the requirements of this section.

     (2) When pesticide warning signs are required under this section, the employer shall post signs visible from all usual points of entry to the pesticide‑treated area.  If there are no usual points of entry or the area is adjacent to an unfenced public right of way, signs shall be posted (a) at each corner of the pesticide‑treated area, and (b) at intervals not exceeding six hundred feet, or (c) at other locations approved by the department that provide maximum visibility.

     (3) The signs shall be posted ((no sooner than twenty‑four hours)) before the ((scheduled)) application of the pesticide but not more than seven days prior to the scheduled application, remain posted during application and throughout the applicable reentry interval, and be removed within two days after the expiration of the applicable reentry interval and before employee reentry is permitted.  Employees working in an area scheduled for a pesticide application shall be informed of the application and shall vacate the area scheduled to be sprayed prior to application of the pesticide.

     (4) Signs shall be legible for the duration of use.  Signs shall contain a prominent symbol approved by the department of agriculture and the department of labor and industries by rule, and wording shall be in English and Spanish or other languages as required by the department.  Signs shall meet the minimum specifications of rules adopted by the department, which rules shall include, at a minimum, size and lettering requirements.

 

     Sec. 3.  RCW 49.70.119 and 1989 c 380 s 77 are each amended to read as follows:

     (1) An employer who ((applies or)) stores pesticides in connection with the production of an agricultural crop shall compile and maintain a workplace pesticide list ((by crop)) for each pesticide that is ((applied to a crop or)) stored in a work area. The workplace pesticide list shall be kept on a form prescribed by the department and shall contain at least the following information:

     (a) The location of the land where the pesticide was ((applied or site where the pesticide was)) stored;

     (b) The year, month, day, and time the pesticide was ((applied)) first stored;

     (c) The product name used on the registered label and the United States environmental protection agency registration number, if applicable, of the pesticide that was ((applied or)) stored((;

     (d) The crop or site to which the pesticide was applied;

     (e) The amount of pesticide applied per acre, or other appropriate measure;

     (f) The concentration of pesticide that was applied;

     (g) The number of acres, or other appropriate measure, to which pesticide was applied;

     (h) If applicable, the licensed applicator's name, address, and telephone number and the name of the individual or individuals making the application; and

     (i) The direction and estimated velocity of the wind at the time the pesticide was applied:  PROVIDED, That this subsection (i) shall not apply to applications of baits in bait stations and pesticide applications within structures)).

     (2) The employer shall update the workplace pesticide list on the same day that a pesticide is ((applied or is first)) stored in a work area.

     (3) The workplace pesticide list may be prepared for the workplace as a whole or for each work area and must be readily available to employees and their designated representatives.  New or newly assigned employees shall be made aware of the pesticide chemical list before working with pesticides or in a work area containing pesticides.

     (4) An employer subject to this section shall maintain ((one)) a form for each ((crop,)) work area((,)) or workplace as a whole, as appropriate, and shall add information to the form as different pesticides are ((applied or)) stored.  The forms shall be accessible and available for copying and shall be stored in a location suitable to preserve their physical integrity.  The employer shall maintain and preserve the forms required under this section for no less than seven years.  The records shall include an estimation of the total amount of each pesticide listed on the forms.

     (5) An employer who applies pesticides in connection with the production of an agricultural crop shall maintain records in accordance with the provisions of RCW 17.21.100.  Such records shall be available to the director of the department of labor and industries, upon request.

     (6) After July 23, 1989, if an employer has failed to maintain and preserve the forms as required, the employer shall be subject to any applicable penalties authorized under this chapter or chapter 49.17 RCW.

     (((6))) (7) If activities for which forms are maintained cease at a workplace, the forms shall be filed with the department. If an employer subject to this section is succeeded or replaced in that function by another person, the person who succeeds or replaces the employer shall retain the forms as required by this section but is not liable for violations committed by the former employer under this chapter or rules adopted under this chapter, including violations relating to the retention and preservation of forms.

     (((7))) (8) The employer shall provide copies of the forms, on request, to an employee or the employee's designated representative in the case of an industrial insurance claim filed under Title 51 RCW with the department of labor and industries, treating medical personnel, the pesticide incident reporting and tracking review panel, or department representative.  The designated representative or treating medical personnel are not required to identify the employee represented or treated.  The department shall keep the name of any affected employee confidential in accordance with RCW 49.17.080(1). If an employee, a designated representative, treating medical personnel, or the pesticide incident reporting and tracking review panel requests a copy of a form and the employer refuses to provide a copy, the requester shall notify the department of the request and the employer's refusal.  Within seven working days, the department shall request that the employer provide the department with all pertinent copies, except that in a medical emergency the request shall be made within two working days.  The employer shall provide copies of the form to the department within twenty‑four hours after the department's request.

     (((8))) (9) The department of labor and industries and the department of agriculture shall jointly adopt, by rule, ((one)) a form that satisfies the information requirements of this section and RCW 17.21.100.  Records ((kept)) submitted by the employer on the prescribed form under RCW 17.21.100 may be used to comply with the workplace pesticide list information requirements under this section.

 

     NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4.      This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and shall take effect immediately.