Review : The Management of Pesticide Exposure in Greenhouses

Abstract

The principles of risk assessment and risk management have been applied to the use of pesticides in greenhouses. Pesticide efficacy and safety require con sideration of a number of exposure scenarios, and the optimal management procedure may need to take into account more than one of these. Worker exposure may occur during pesticide spraying and the subsequent handling of plant material. Exclusion and the wearing of personal protective equipment are occupational hygiene practices that are used to control human uptake aris ing from these exposures. The principal factor affecting exposure levels in air and their decay is the ventilation characteristics of the greenhouse, and is therefore site-specific. As the principal route of exposure of workers is dermal, and rates of penetration of pesticide through protective clothing vary, choice of protective clothing is also important. This paper demonstrates that there is a need for site-specific occupational hygiene advice when undertaking work in greenhouses.