Restricted-Use Pesticide Record Keeping
for Private Applicators

A section of the Food, Agriculture, Conservation, and Trade (FACT) Act of 1990, also know as the 1990 Farm Bill, requires private pesticide applicators to keep records of restricted-use pesticide (RUP) applications. These regulations originally went into effect in May 1993 and were revised in May 1995. The intent of these record-keeping requirements is to estimate the use of RUPs and to provide emergency medical information for the treatment of exposure to these pesticides. The program is administered by the Ag Marketing Service of USDA.
Specific information that private pesticide applicators making general applications of RUPs are required to keep includes:

• Brand/product name and EPA registration number.
• Total amount of the RUP applied.
• Location of application, size of area or units treated, and the crop or site to which the RUP was applied.
• Date of application (month/day/year).
• Name and certification number of the certified applicator making the application.

Spot treatments include applications made on the same day which total no more than 1/10 acre. Records for spot treatments must include most of the information listed above; however, crop/site treated and acres treated may be replaced by "spot treatment" and general location of the treatment. An example would be "Spot-sprayed thistle over SE1/4 of Sec. 27."

The application information must be recorded within 14 days of the application and kept for a minimum of two years. If commercial pesticide applicators apply RUPs, they must provide the required application information to their customers within 30 days. Commercial applicators already are required by state regulations to keep a record of all of their applications.

There are no standardized record-keeping forms. Any record-keeping method will be acceptable as long as it is readily available for inspection and contains the required information. Example record forms are available from your local South Dakota Extension Service office. A pocket notebook, EC 902, Field Records for General and Restricted-Use Pesticide Applications, meets the requirements of the RUP record-keeping regulations and provides a handy form to record other important agronomic information. Ask for this free publication at your local Extension office. Keeping records of all pesticide applications will be beneficial in planning crop rotation, determining pesticide performance, and evaluating other crop management decisions.

Restricted-use pesticide records may be reviewed only by the Ag Marketing Service of USDA, and the S.D. Department of Agriculture (or tribal pesticide programs in some areas). Licensed health care professionals also may have access to the records if it is determined that the information is necessary to treat an individual who has been exposed to a pesticide from the treated site. Estimates of RUP use may be determined through voluntary surveys of applicators conducted by the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

The following list provides the product name, registrant (company), and EPA registration number for most of the agricultural restricted-use pesticides used in SouthDakota. Some active ingredients, such as atrazine, may bemarketed by several registrants, so be sure you record the correct product. Since labels and EPA registration numbers change from time to time, always check the EPA registration number on the product you are using.

Restricted Use Pesticides in South Dakota