Acute Pesticide Illnesses Associated with Off-Target Pesticide Drift from Agricultural Applications: 11 States, 1998–2006

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Environ Health Perspect
• Personal Author:
  Lee, Soo-Jeong ; Mehler, Louise ; Beckman, John ; Diebolt-Brown, Brienne ; Prado, Joanne ; Lackovic, Michelle ; Waltz, Justin ; Mulay, Prakash ; Schwartz, Abby ; Mitchell, Yvette ; Moraga-McHaley, Stephanie ; Gergely, Rita ; Calvert, Geoffrey M.
• Description:
  Pesticides are widely used in agriculture, and off-target pesticide drift exposes workers and the public to harmful chemicals.|We estimated the incidence of acute illnesses from pesticide drift from outdoor agricultural applications and characterized drift exposure and illnesses.|Data were obtained from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's Sentinel Event Notification System for Occupational Risks-Pesticides program and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. Drift included off-target movement of pesticide spray, volatiles, and contaminated dust. Acute illness cases were characterized by demographics, pesticide and application variables, health effects, and contributing factors.|From 1998 through 2006, we identified 2,945 cases associated with agricultural pesticide drift from 11 states. Our findings indicate that 47% were exposed at work, 92% experienced low-severity illness, and 14% were children (< 15 years). The annual incidence ranged from 1.39 to 5.32 per million persons over the 9-year period. The overall incidence (in million person-years) was 114.3 for agricultural workers, 0.79 for other workers, 1.56 for nonoccupational cases, and 42.2 for residents in five agriculture-intensive counties in California. Soil applications with fumigants were responsible for the largest percentage (45%) of cases. Aerial applications accounted for 24% of cases. Common factors contributing to drift cases included weather conditions, improper seal of the fumigation site, and applicator carelessness near nontarget areas.|Agricultural workers and residents in agricultural regions had the highest rate of pesticide poisoning from drift exposure, and soil fumigations were a major hazard, causing large drift incidents. Our findings highlight areas where interventions to reduce off-target drift could be focused.
• Subjects:
  Adolescent Adult Aged Agricultural Workers' Diseases Agriculture Drift Female Humans Male Middle Aged Pesticides Poisoning Research Surveillance Young Adult

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• Source:
  Environ Health Perspect. 2011; 119(8):1162-1169.
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Volume:
  119
• Issue:
  8
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:7235d2f5d116900a6bc6a5fac810268f7e4c79768b088a8b69bdcc9b55dce33b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/3816/cdc_3816_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 286.55 KB ]