WAC 296-307-14505   What records must an employer keep for pesticide applications?  (1) If you apply pesticides, or have pesticides applied for you, related to the production of an agricultural crop, you must keep records for each application. The records must include the following:

     (a) The address or exact location where the pesticide was applied or stored;

Note:

If you apply pesticides to one acre or more, the location must be shown on the map on the required form for at least the first application.

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

     (c) The product name 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 (application crop or site);

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

     (f) The concentration of pesticide applied;

     (g) The total area to which pesticide was applied;

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

     (i) The direction and estimated velocity of the wind at the time the pesticide was applied;

Exception:

Wind information does not have to be recorded for applications of baits in bait stations and pesticide applications within structures.

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

     (2) A commercial pesticide applicator must provide a copy of the pesticide application records to the owner or lessee of the lands to which the pesticide is applied. Pesticide application records may be provided on any form that includes all required information.

     (3) You must update records on the same day that a pesticide is applied. You may use a copy as the record of the pesticide application. You must maintain the records for at least seven years after the date of the application.

     (4) You must ensure that pesticide application records are readily accessible to employees and their designated representatives in a central location in the workplace. The records must be available beginning on the day the application is made and for at least thirty days after. You may view the pesticide application records and make your own record from that information.

     (5) New or newly assigned employees must be made aware of the accessibility of the application records before working with pesticides or in an area containing pesticides.

     (6) When storing pesticides, you must, at least once a year, perform an inventory of the pesticides stored in any work area.

     (7) The pesticide inventory records must include the following information:

     (a) The location where the pesticide is stored;

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

     (d) The amount of pesticide in storage at the time of the inventory.

     (8) You must maintain a record of pesticide purchases made between the annual inventory dates.

     (a) Instead of this purchase record, you may obtain from distributors from whom you buy pesticides, a statement obligating the distributor to maintain the purchase records on your behalf to meet the requirements of this section.

     (b) We may require you to submit all purchase records covering the purchases during a specified period of time or in a specified geographical area.

     (9) When you end all pesticide activities, you must file the records with us. Anyone who succeeds or replaces you must retain the records required by this section, but that person is not liable for any violations you commit.

     (10) You must ensure that the records required under this section are readily accessible to us for inspection. You must also provide copies of the records on request, to:

     (a) 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;

     (b) Treating health care personnel; or

     (c) The pesticide incident reporting and tracking review panel.

     (11) The designated representative or treating health care personnel are not required to identify the employee represented or treated.

     (12) We will keep the name of any affected employee confidential according to RCW 49.17.080(1).

     (13) When treating health care personnel request records under this section, and the record is required to determine treatment, you must provide copies of the record immediately. Information for treating health care personnel must be made immediately available by telephone, if requested, with a copy of the records provided within twenty-four hours. For all other requests, you must provide copies of the records within seventy-two hours.

     (14) If requested, you must provide copies of records on a form provided by the department.

     (15) If you suspect that an employee is ill or injured because of an exposure to one or more pesticides, you must immediately provide the employee with a copy of the relevant pesticide application records.

     (16) If you refuse to provide a copy of a requested record, the requester may notify the department of the request and your refusal.

     (a) Within seven working days, we will request that you provide us with all pertinent copies of the records, except that in a medical emergency we will request within two working days.

     (b) You must provide copies of the records to us within twenty-four hours after we request.

     (17) We inspect for the records required under this section as part of any on-site inspection of a workplace conducted under this chapter or chapter 49.17 RCW. We will determine, during the inspection, whether the records are readily transferable to a form adopted by the department, and readily accessible to employees. However, your records will not be inspected more than once in any calendar year, unless a previous inspection has found recordkeeping violations. If recordkeeping violations are found, we may conduct reasonable multiple inspections, according to department rules. Nothing in this section limits our inspection of records pertaining to pesticide-related injuries, illnesses, fatalities, accidents, or complaints.

     (18) If you fail to maintain the records, or provide access to or copies of the records required under this section, you will be subject to penalties authorized under RCW 49.17.180.

     (19) The department of labor and industries and the department of agriculture will jointly adopt by rule, forms that satisfy the information requirements of this section and RCW 17.21.100. Pesticide application record forms can be found in chapter 16-228 WAC, General pesticide rules.



[Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010, 49.17.040, 49.17.050, and 49.17.060. 04-13-129, § 296-307-14505, filed 6/22/04, effective 8/1/04. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.010,[49.17].040 , and [49.17].050. 01-17-033, § 296-307-14505, filed 8/8/01, effective 9/1/01. 97-09-013, recodified as § 296-307-14505, filed 4/7/97, effective 4/7/97. Statutory Authority: RCW 49.17.040, [49.17.]050 and [49.17.]060. 96-22-048, § 296-306A-14505, filed 10/31/96, effective 12/1/96.]