§136 Definitions

Summary

Defines the words used in the pesticide laws. It explains what many common terms mean so people know how the law applies. Active ingredient — the part of a product that does the pest control or plant-regulating work. Administrator — the head of the Environmental Protection Agency. Adulterated — when a pesticide is weaker than its label, has been partly replaced, or has had something valuable taken out. Animal — any vertebrate or invertebrate, including humans, birds, fish, and shellfish. Certified applicator — someone officially certified to use or supervise restricted-use pesticides; private applicator — a certified person who uses restricted pesticides to grow agricultural commodities on land they or their employer own or rent (or on another’s land without pay except trading services); commercial applicator — anyone who uses restricted pesticides for other purposes or places; direct supervision — when a competent person follows a certified applicator’s instructions and the certified applicator is available even if not physically present. Defoliant — a substance meant to make leaves drop. Desiccant — a substance meant to speed drying of plant tissue. Device — a tool (not a firearm) made to trap, kill, repel, or control pests or other plants/animals, but not separate pesticide application equipment. District court — U.S. district courts, District Court of Guam, District Court of the Virgin Islands, and the highest court of American Samoa. Environment — water, air, land, all plants and animals, and how they interact. Fungus — non-green lower plants such as rust, mildew, mold, and yeast, and certain bacteria, except those on or in living people or animals or in processed foods, drinks, or medicines. Imminent hazard — a situation where keeping to a pesticide’s use while cancellation is decided would likely cause unreasonable harm to the environment or threaten an endangered species. Inert ingredient — an ingredient that is not active. Ingredient statement — a label list showing each active ingredient and its percentage, the total percent of inert ingredients, and, if arsenic is present, the percentages of total and water-soluble arsenic as elemental arsenic. Insect — the common six-legged forms and related arthropods like spiders and mites. Label — the printed matter on the product or its container; labeling — all labels and other printed material that come with the product or are referred to on the label, with some official publication exceptions. Misbranded — a pesticide is misbranded if its label or packaging is false or misleading, lacks required registration or ingredient info, fails to give directions or warnings needed to protect health and the environment, is an imitation, or for export-only unregistered products does not prominently state that it is “Not Registered for Use in the United States of America.” Nematode — unsegmented roundworms found in soil, water, or plants. Person — any individual, partnership, association, corporation, or organized group. Pest — insects, rodents, nematodes, fungi, weeds, or other plant or animal life or microorganisms (except those on or in living people or animals) that the Administrator may declare to be pests. Pesticide — a substance used to prevent, destroy, repel, or lessen pests, or used as a plant regulator, defoliant, desiccant, or nitrogen stabilizer; it excludes certain new animal drugs and animal feeds with new animal drugs, and excludes liquid chemical sterilants for critical or semi-critical medical devices as defined in title 21. Plant regulator — a substance that changes plant growth or maturation but not ordinary nutrients or certain vitamin-hormone horticultural products used for plant health and not for pest destruction. Producer/produce — the person who makes or processes a pesticide or active ingredient; making small, label-directed dilutions for one’s own use does not make someone a producer. Protect health and the environment — means protection against unreasonable adverse effects on the environment. Registrant — a person who has registered a pesticide under the law. Registration — includes reregistration. State — includes the 50 States, DC, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and American Samoa. Unreasonable adverse effects on the environment — any unreasonable risk to people or the environment after weighing economic, social, and environmental costs and benefits, or a human dietary risk from residues that conflicts with the standard under section 346a of title 21; the Administrator must consider public health pesticides separately and weigh their risks against disease risks from the vectors they control. Weed — a plant growing where not wanted. Establishment — any place where pesticides or devices or active ingredients are made, held, or stored for sale or distribution. “To use any registered pesticide in a manner inconsistent with its labeling” — generally means using a product not allowed by its label, with specific exceptions (for example, using a lower dosage unless the label forbids it, certain uses on unlisted pests when the crop/site are on the label, methods not barred by the label, mixing with fertilizer if allowed, uses consistent with certain statutory sections, or uses the Administrator approves); after March 31, 1979, using a pesticide for agricultural or forestry purposes at a dilution less than the label is not allowed unless the Administrator issues a regulation or advisory opinion following a specific study. Outstanding data requirement — a needed study or information under section 136a(c)(5) that has not been submitted or must be resubmitted because it is not valid or complete; the Administrator must review study methods and results. To distribute or sell — includes selling, offering for sale, holding for sale or shipment, shipping, and delivering, but does not include holding or applying registered pesticides by an applicator who provides pest control services without delivering any unopened pesticide to the customer. Nitrogen stabilizer — a substance that stops or slows nitrification, denitrification, ammonia loss, or urease production by acting on soil bacteria; excludes dicyandiamide, ammonium thiosulfate, and certain substances not registered before January 1, 1992 or not in commercial agronomic use before January 1, 1992 under specific conditions. Maintenance applicator — someone whose main job is using or supervising non-restricted pesticides (not ready-to-use consumer products) for structural or lawn pest control, such as janitors and groundskeepers, but not private applicators, antimicrobial users, government employees, or people using pesticides on their own noncommercial property. Service technician — someone who applies or supervises pesticides (not ready-to-use consumer products) for structural or lawn pest control on someone else’s property for a fee; excludes antimicrobial or ready-to-use consumer product users. Minor use — a pesticide use on an animal or commercial crop/site where total U.S. acreage is less than 300,000 acres, or where the Administrator and the Secretary of Agriculture decide the use lacks enough economic incentive and one of these is true: there are not enough effective alternatives, alternatives present greater risks, the pesticide helps manage resistance, or it is important in an integrated pest management program. Antimicrobial pesticide — a pesticide intended to disinfect, sanitize, reduce or control microbes on inanimate objects, surfaces, water, or industrial systems and that is exempt from or not subject to certain food-tolerance rules; it excludes some wood preservatives, agricultural fungicides, and aquatic herbicides, but includes other sterilants, disinfectants, industrial microbiocides, and preservative products. Public health pesticide — a minor use pesticide used mainly in public health programs for vector control or similar health protection uses. Vector — an organism that can spread disease or cause human discomfort or injury, such as mosquitoes, flies, fleas, cockroaches, ticks, mites, or rats.