Pesticide storage, disposal, drift and complaints in the United Kingdom

This page reports what the official source says. It is not legal advice: ask the office named here. The source is the Health and Safety Executive, called HSE below, which covers plant protection products, the term used in the UK for pesticides. Its pages describe Great Britain; the HSE complaints page says Northern Ireland follows a different regulation under the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs. Certificates and licensing are on the guide pesticide licences by country.

Using, storing and disposing

The HSE overview says everyone who uses, or causes or permits others to use, plant protection products, or who stores or disposes of them, is subject to legal requirements. These come from the Plant Protection Products (Sustainable Use) Regulations 2012. Professional users and distributors take all reasonable precautions so that handling, storage and disposal do not endanger human health or the environment, and storage areas are built to prevent unwanted releases of products. The overview adds that anyone applying products professionally holds a recognised specified training certificate, and that application equipment other than knapsack and hand-held kit has a certificate from the National Sprayer Testing Scheme, tested every three, five or six years depending on type and last test. Aerial spraying needs an HSE permit.

The overview points to the Code of Practice for Using Plant Protection Products, produced jointly by Defra and HSE. HSE says the law does not require anyone to follow the guidance, but doing so puts a person in a good position to show due diligence. The code has the status of a statutory code of practice: not following it is not itself an offence, but failure to follow it can be used as evidence of a breach of the law.

Spray drift and buffer zones

The HSE page on spray drift says the 2012 Regulations require application to be confined to the land, crop, structure or other area being treated, and that spray must not drift outside it. It says users take all reasonable precautions, including suitable technique and equipment and account of weather and of neighbours, the public, wildlife and the environment. The code is quoted as describing the safest conditions as a steady force 2 light breeze blowing away from sensitive areas or neighbours' land.

Near water, the label and approval give the buffer zone that must be used, and the size depends on the sprayer type. HSE says the width can sometimes be cut with a Local Environment Risk Assessment for Pesticides, called a LERAP. The page lists factors that affect drift, among them atmospheric stability and nozzle and pressure choice, and says the right environmental or conservation agency is contacted before spraying in case sensitive areas exist. It says spraying may be illegal where the proper consultation and notification has not taken place, and it ties drift to the COSHH assessment, which should consider exposure of members of the public.

Where an incident or complaint goes

Type of report	Who HSE names
Ill health at factories, farms and similar workplaces	HSE inspectors normally investigate
Ill health at leisure premises and similar places	Local authority environmental health inspectors
Pollution of water or land	The Environment Agency, 0800 807060; in Scotland the Scottish Environment Protection Agency
Deaths of wildlife, livestock or some pets	The Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme run by Defra, freephone 0800 321600
Concern about non-compliance with plant protection products law	The enforcing authority; HSE's Chemicals Regulation Division enforcement team where HSE is the authority

HSE says incidents are best reported as soon as possible, with the product name, manufacturer, active ingredient, registration number, and when, where and how exposure happened, including any extreme weather. For a complaint to HSE it asks for detail, saying it cannot act on generic concerns and may not investigate anonymous complaints. People who feel unwell are told to seek medical advice, and health professionals can get specialised advice from the National Poisons Information Service.

Contains public sector information published by the Health and Safety Executive and licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Pesticide storage, disposal, drift and complaints in the United Kingdom

Using, storing and disposing

Spray drift and buffer zones

Where an incident or complaint goes

Sources