Pesticide Safety Education Program
New and Noteworthy General Use Core Training -January or February 2012. Register to Attend TODAY
New Hampshire requires that anyone applying pesticides commercially must be certified as a commercial pesticide applicator. This certification is required regardless of whether the applicator gets paid for the service or whether the pesticide would be classified as general use, including over the counter home owner type pesticides, or restricted use.In May of 2011, the New Hampshire Department of Agriculture, Markets and Food, Division of Pesticide Control put forth a change in the existing Rules and Regulations. With this change an individual can apply for a "Supervisory Registration Certificate for GeneralUse" for Right of Way (B) and Turf Pest Control (G2). To be eligible for this new Supervisory Registration Certificate a person needs to have completed 8 hours of category-specific training for each category and an additional 8 hours of general use instruction.
This training is the first step in the process to obtaining the Supervisory Registration Certificate - General Use.UNH Cooperative Extension and the NH Landscaper's Association are sponsoring a training to all potential applicators interested in applying for this new Supervisory Registration Certificate. We will be hosting a series of three face-to-face meetings scheduled for January or February 2012 to satisfy this requirement.
The cost of participation will be $95.00 per session plus the cost of study materials
The Pesticide Safety Education Program (PSEP) formerly known as the Pesticide Applicator Training Program is responsible for protecting people and the environment from pesticide risks. To accomplish this we strive to educate pesticide applicators of the responsibilities of personal and environmental safety in the area of regulation, environmental and human safety, calibration, integrated pest management, pest control, and pesticide storage and disposal.
This program serves as an important vehicle to introduce growers and commercial applicators to the concepts of integrated pest management, water quality protection, endangered species protection and farm worker protection programs. Certification is required by law and permits farmers and pest control operators to purchase, store, and apply pesticides. The PSEP is a key element in Extension's commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainable agriculture.
Private applicators include the traditional farm commodity groups and Christmas tree growers. All applicators that apply pesticides as part of their job on land owned by others must have a commercial license. Commercial license holders include groundskeepers, golf course superintendents, landscapers, exterminators, etc. Cooperative Extension has a memorandum of agreement with the NH Department of Agriculture to be the lead agency to provide pesticide education for farmers and foresters in NH.
Cooperative Extension is responsible for the manuals used by New Hampshire applicators as study guides for certification. Manuals include a “core” with materials that all applicators must know, plus 20 category specific manuals for commercial applicators and 10 category specific manuals for private applicators. These manuals can be ordered by contacting the UNH Cooperative Extension’s Family, Home & Garden Education Center, 200 Bedford Street, Manchester NH 03101 @ 603-629-9494 or by faxing a copy of your order form to 629-9998.
Recertification credits can be obtained by attending educational programs offered by UNH Cooperative Extension or co-sponsored with commodity organizations. Many of these are individual county meetings, while others are organized programs given at multiple sites throughout the state. Recertification meetings are advertised on the UNHCE web page as well as in the NH Dept. of Agriculture Weekly Market Bulletin.
For further information on the PSEP program, contact your local county agricultural educator, or Rachel Maccini, Pesticide Safety Education Program Coordinator at 603-629-9494 extension 130.
