Virginia Pesticide Control Act & Regulations
Question: In what year was the Virginia Pesticide Control Act first passed?
1989
How does a registered technician differ from a certified commercial applicator?
A registered technician may render the same services as a commercial applicator but has not completed all the training or time in service requirements to be eligible for examination for certification as a commercial applicator and is limited to application of general use pesticides. If an RT applies restricted use pesticides, they shall do so only under the direct supervision of a certified commercial applicator. Every registered technician is certified in Category 60 regardless of the category or subcategory in which he is trained and applies pesticides. (Core, page 1-6 and 1-28 (Test your knowledge)
What document does compliance staff reference when assessing penalties for violations?
Civil Penalty Matrix
What is the full name of the form that an employer would complete if they hired a registered technician and provided them with additional training in a category that they were not trained in previously?
Proof of Additional Category Specific Training for Registered Technicians
ORACLE is sometimes referenced as the ______ system by IS staff?
“Legacy”
Which board has the authority to adopt regulations under the Virginia Pesticide Control Act?
Board of Agriculture and Consumer Services
What are the four possible signal word options that may be found on a pesticide product label?
Danger-Poison (with a skull and crossbones symbol),
Danger,
Warning,
Caution
This type of compliance correspondence is issued when a violation is found, but no civil penalty is assessed.
Letter of Caution
Provide four reasons an applicator would submit a CA-B form:
Not Yet Certified – Retesting failed exams or requesting a new authorization
Currently certified applicator testing to add one or more additional pest control categories
Reinstating an expired certificate
Currently certified applicator testing in lieu of attending a recertification course
True or False: There are documents in EDC that date back to the 1970’s?
True (Although EDC was not in use in the ‘90’s, staff scanned documents from that period into EDC when the program started using the application).
Who has the legal authority in Virginia to declare a form of plant, animal, virus, or bacteria a “pest”?
The Commissioner of VDACS
Provide the term for the adjuvant which allows a pesticide to form a uniform coating layer over the treated surface.
spreader (the term “surfactant” includes spreaders but is used in a broader sense for adjuvants which alter the dispersing, spreading and wetting properties of spray droplets).
If a business receives a Notice of Alleged Violation from OPS, it includes a form they can complete and return describing corrective actions they’ve taken to come into compliance. What is the name of the form and what is the maximum credit that they can receive for the actions they have taken?
Opportunity to Provide Good Faith, Maximum credit – 4 points
If a government agency wants to use unpaid volunteers to apply nonrestricted use pesticides for the sole purpose of controlling invasive plants or noxious weeds are they required to get them certified at any time so long as they are supervised by a certified commercial applicator who instructs them in accordance with the Pesticide Control Act?
No.
EDC is an acronym for:
Enterprise Document Cabinet (Full credit); Electronic Document Cabinet (Partial Credit)
What types of bacterium, virus, and microorganisms are excluded from the term “Pest”?
Those found on or in living man or other living animals and those on or in processed food or processed animal feed, beverages, drugs and cosmetics
What is the difference between a contact and a systemic pesticide?
A contact pesticide is only effective where it touches the pest. A systemic pesticide will move internally (translocate) though an organism after an insect eats it or a plant absorbs it.
What is the foundational law governing how state executive agencies propose and issue regulations, make final case decisions, and establish the framework for how citizens can appeal to agency decisions?
Virginia Administrative Process Act
An investigator observes a public-school teacher applying a ready-to-use pesticide to an in-ground yellow-jacket nest outside the side entrance to the school because maintenance staff were not immediately available and students were getting stung. The investigator finds that the teacher is not certified, even though they are a government employee. Are they in violation so long as the product is registered for use in Virginia?
No. There is an exemption in the regulations that allows employees of government agencies to make incidental use of ready-to-use pesticides that are properly registered in Virginia.
When you open EDC what other application must you open first?
PuTTY
According to the regulations, the term “drift” means the physical movement of pesticide through the air at the time of pesticide application or soon thereafter from the target site to any nontarget or off-target site but does not include movement of pesticides to nontarget or off-target sites caused by ______ unless specifically addressed on the pesticide product label with respect to drift control requirements.
“caused by erosion, migration, volatility, or windblown soil particles that occurs after application”
What are the four types of FIFRA Section 18, Emergency Exemptions?
Specific (significant economic loss, significant risk to the environment),
Quarantine (control intro or spread of invasive pest species),
Public Health (pest poses significant risk to human health),
Crisis (“immediate need”)
According to the Virginia Pesticide Control Act, what is the maximum amount of money that the Board may assess for a repeat or knowing violation after providing written notice of the alleged violation?
$20, 000 for a repeat or knowing violation ($1,000 for less than serious violation; $5,000 for serious violation)
A commercial applicator can provide direct, on-site supervision of no more than 8 non-certified applicators who are applying what type of pesticide?
A restricted use marine anti-foulant paint
Besides research of historical records, what three primary things does OPS still actively use ORACLE for?
Enforcement records (Inspections/Investigations); Recertification course entries; Cost Report data entry (for federal grant purposes).