NEWS for North Dakotans
Agriculture Communication, North Dakota State University
7 Morrill Hall, Fargo, ND 58105-5665
February 10, 2000
The North Dakota Pesticide Control Board has made changes to its certification process that will affect private applicators of restricted-use products. These private applicators now must pass a monitored exam or receive approved training, depending upon whether they are seeking first-time certification or recertification, says a plant scientist with the North Dakota State University Extension Service.
Home-study or take-home tests no longer satisfy the requirements for obtaining initial certification or recertification for private pesticide applicators, says Andrew Thostenson, extension pesticide programs specialist at NDSU. This correspondence-course system had been called into question because of its inability to assure that applicators actually were taking the certification exams on their own.
"These concerns have been raised by our surrounding states, by the EPA in its annual reviews of our program, by our own industry and because of observations regarding test results here at NDSU," Thostenson says. "Faced with these questions, the Pesticide Control Board has decided that now is the time to raise the bar and demonstrate that North Dakota has a solid certification program which is meeting or exceeding national standards and goals."
Pesticide certification is required nationally and statewide for all those individuals who use restricted-use pesticides. In North Dakota, the Department of Agriculture has responsibility for enforcing state and federal pesticide laws. The NDSU Extension Service has been charged by the legislature with the responsibility of providing a training and certification program for the state's applicators.
About 15,000 private pesticide applicators currently are certified to use restricted-use pesticides in North Dakota, Thostenson says. Each year about 4,000 people participate in the training and certification process.
Under the new certification policy, private applicators applying for their initial certification must pass a test administered and monitored by an NDSU extension agent. Private applicators seeking recertification must attend at least 3.5 hours of NDSU-approved pesticide training or pass the monitored test, Thostenson says. These requirements satisfy the standards for Private General Certification, which is a prerequisite for Private Fumigation Certification. A second test or additional training is required for private applicators of fumigants and is based upon certification category (initial certification or recertification).
In North Dakota, pesticide training and testing traditionally occur during the months of February, March and early April. Private applicators can obtain more details on North Dakota's pesticide certification program, training or testing information from any county office of the NDSU Extension Service.
###
Source: Andrew Thostenson (701) 231-8050
Editor: Dean Hulse (701) 231-6136