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Environmental Hazard and General Labeling for Pyrethroid Non-Agricultural Outdoor Products
Actions for Consumers to Reduce Spray Drift and Runoff from Pyrethroid Pesticide Product Applications
When applying pyrethroid pesticides around your home, follow these good stewardship practices to protect water resources by reducing runoff and spray drift.
- Only apply the pesticide directly to the treatment area.
- Be mindful of the location of storm drains, drainage ditches, gutters, or surface waters during a pesticide application. Apply the pesticide in a manner that does not allow the product to enter these areas.
- Applying pesticides during calm weather conditions, when rain is not predicted for the next 24 hours, will help to ensure that wind or rain does not blow or wash pesticide off the treatment area.
- Rinsing application equipment, such as watering cans, low pressure hand wands, backpack sprayers, etc. over the treated area will help avoid runoff to water bodies or drainage systems.
- When applying granular products, sweeping any product that lands on a driveway, sidewalk, street, or other hard impervious surface, back onto the treated area of the lawn or garden will help to prevent runoff to water bodies or drainage systems.
- When watering treated areas, refer to the watering-in instructions on the label, and ensure you do not water the treated area to the point of runoff.
Overview of Initiative
To reduce ecological exposure from residential uses of pyrethroids, EPA has revised the “Environmental Hazard Statements” and general “Directions for Use” for pyrethroid pesticide products used in non-agricultural outdoor settings. These label statements will lead to reduced potential for runoff and drift that can result from applications of pyrethroid end-use products by both professional pesticide control operators and residential consumers in residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial areas. The label statements spell out good stewardship and best-management practices and clarify how these types of products are intended to be used.
While much of the information on this page is designed to help pesticide manufacturers understand the labeling changes, consumers can also use the practices, described in the box to the right, to help protect valuable water resources.
The “Environmental Hazard Statements” and general “Directions for Use” statements are included in the revised label tables for pyrethroids that were subject to reregistration [allethrins, cypermethrin, tau-fluvalinate, permethrin, resmethrin, sumithrin (d-phenothrin), and tetramethrin]. The updated label tables will be published in the chemicals' respective dockets, which can be accessed from the chemical pages on the Pesticide Reregistration Status table. For those pyrethroid active ingredients that were not subject to reregistration, EPA mailed a letter outlining the label changes to all pyrethroid registrants requesting the changes be incorporated onto their appropriate pyrethroid end-use products' labels.
This labeling initiative affects over 2,000 end-use pyrethroid products. EPA’s analysis demonstrates that these label statements serve to protect aquatic habitats and the environment. Consumers are encouraged follow these common sense measures, described in the box above.
Specific “Environmental Hazard Statements” and “Directions for Use” for Pyrethroid Non-Agricultural Outdoor Products
The revised “Environmental Hazard Statements” and “Directions for Use” label language are captured in the Environmental Hazard and General Labeling for Pyrethroid Non-Agricultural Outdoor Products Label Table (6 pp, 39k, About PDF).
Environmental Hazard Statements
The consumer use of pesticide products differs significantly from the use of pesticides in agricultural production. However, many of the label statements on residential use products were originally developed for agricultural users or professional applicators. EPA believes these statements may be irrelevant or confusing to consumers.
In an effort to make consumer labels easier to understand and follow, the Agency developed Pesticide Registration (PR) Notice 2008-1 “Environmental Hazard General Labeling Statements on Outdoor Residential Use Products.” PR Notice 2008-1 provides guidance on environmental hazard label language for certain non-restricted use pesticide products intended for outdoor residential use. This pyrethroid labeling initiative incorporates the environmental hazard label language established in PR Notice 2008-1.
The specific label statements recommended in PR Notice 2008-1 are intended to improve existing labels by clarifying language on what the user should do to avoid potential environmental contamination. The Agency believes that adoption of these recommendations by all registrants, including pyrethroid registrants, will help pesticide users better understand how to use consumer products and minimize environmental hazards.
One example of an “Environmental Hazard Statement” implemented through this labeling initiative is:
“To protect the environment, do not allow pesticide to enter or run off into storm drains, drainage ditches, gutters or surface waters. Applying this product in calm weather when rain is not predicted for the next 24 hours will help to ensure that wind or rain does not blow or wash pesticide off the treatment area. Sweeping any product that lands on a driveway, sidewalk, or street, back onto the treated area of the lawn or garden will help to prevent runoff to water bodies or drainage systems.”
The PR Notice 2008-1 environmental hazard statements are formulation-specific, which means appropriate best management practices are specified for the application of liquid, dust, granular, and ready-to-use products. For example, the environmental hazard statement above applies specifically to granular end-use products.
Directions for Use
The general “Directions for Use” included in this labeling initiative are considered to be best management and good stewardship practices, which, like the “Environmental Hazard Statements” discussed above, will minimize ecological exposure. Some of the “Directions for Use” labeling applies solely to preconstruction termiticide applications, which are applied only by professional pesticide control operators.
One example of a “Directions for Use” statement implemented through this labeling initiative is:
“Apply this product directly to the lawn or garden area. Water treated area as directed on this label. Do not water to the point of runoff.”
Timeframe for Labeling
As discussed above, a notification letter was sent to all pyrethroid registrants on June 4, 2009, requesting that they adopt these label statements on their products containing pyrethroid active ingredients with registered uses on non-agricultural outdoor areas by June 4, 2010.
Guidance for Implementing
In October 2011, EPA provided the California Department of Pesticide Regulation clarification and interpretive guidance on language used in the Agency's pyrethroid non-agricultural outdoor products labeling initiative. This guidance could apply and may be of interest to other states and stakeholders.-- EPA's October 25, 2011 response to CDPR (PDF) (4 pp, 372.97k, About PDF)
-- CDPR's August 4, 2011 inquiry (PDF) (3 pp, 179.22k, About PDF)