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Ag Center Fact Sheet |
September 1998
Agrichemicals
WPS - Enclosed Cabs
FOCUS ON
Equipment with Enclosed Cabs
The Agricultural Worker Protection Standard (WPS) is a regulation issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992 and amended in 1995. It covers pesticides that are used in the production of agricultural plants on farms, forests, nurseries, and greenhouses. The WPS requires you to take steps to reduce the risk of pesticide-related illness and injury if you (1) use such pesticides, or (2) employ workers or pesticide handlers who are exposed to such pesticides.
This fact sheet will help you understand how to comply with WPS requirements for protecting people from pesticide exposure while they are working in vehicles that have enclosed cabs.
Features of enclosed cabs
Enclosed cabs must have a nonporous barrier that totally surrounds the occupants and prevents contact with pesticides outside of the cab.
Enclosed cabs that provide respiratory protection must have a properly functioning ventilation system that is used and maintained according to the manufacturer's written operating instructions. The cab must be declared in writing by the manufacturer or by a governmental agency to provide at least as much respiratory protection as the type of respirator listed on the pesticide labeling.
Some enclosed-cab systems provide respiratory protection equivalent to a dust/mist filtering respirator and could, therefore, be used as a substitute when that type of respirator is specified on the product labeling. Other enclosed-cab systems are equipped to remove organic vapors as well as dusts and mists and could be used as a substitute when either the dust/mist filtering respirator or an organic-vapor-removing respirator is specified on the product labeling.
PPE exceptions
You may allow handlers to omit some of the personal protective equipment (PPE) listed on the pesticide labeling for a handling task if the handlers are using an enclosed cab. Even when reduced PPE is permitted to be worn during a task, handlers must be provided all PPE required by the pesticide labeling for that task and have it immediately available for use in an emergency. These exceptions to PPE are allowed unless expressly prohibited by product labeling.
In an enclosed cab that does not provide respiratory protection, handlers need not wear all the PPE listed on the pesticide labeling, but must wear at least:
- long-sleeved shirt and long pants,
- shoes and socks, and
- any respirator required for the handling task.
In an enclosed cab that provides respiratory protection equal to the labeling-required respirator, handlers need not wear all the PPE listed on the pesticide labeling, but must wear at least:
- long-sleeved shirt and long pants, and
- shoes and socks.
In any enclosed cab where reduced PPE is worn, handlers must:
- keep immediately available all PPE listed on the labeling for the type of task being performed,
- wear the PPE if it is necessary to leave the cab and contact pesticide-treated surfaces in the treated area,
- take off PPE that was worn in the treated area before reentering the cab, and
- store all PPE in a chemical-resistant container, such as a plastic bag, to prevent contamination of the inside of the cab.
For more information
To get more facts about compliance, contact the Ag Center by phone, fax, or mail. Call the toll-free number to ask compliance questions or order publications. At the Ag Center's Web site you can explore compliance information and order or download publications. For a complete publications list, request document 10001, "Ag Center Publications."
The Ag Center welcomes comments on this document and its other services.
National Agriculture Compliance
Assistance Center
901 North Fifth Street
Kansas City, KS 66101
Toll-free: 1-888-663-2155
Internet: www.epa.gov/agriculture
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EPA's Ag Center.