Welcome to Exposure Task Forces
The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has the responsibility of registering and regulating the use of pesticides as presented in the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). To ensure the safe use of pesticides, the EPA conducts risk assessments applicable to people who come in contact with pesticides. An important component of risk assessments is exposure (the amount of pesticide residue that might contact a person’s skin and that might be inhaled). These two components are “generic”, meaning that the amount of exposure is a function of the formulation types and activities rather than the specific product being used. This allowed the pesticide industry to work with US EPA as well as Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA), and California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) to develop databases of exposure that are applicable to virtually all pesticides used outdoors in North America. This was accomplished by the following three industry Task Forces.
To learn more, simply click the individual Task Forces below.
AHETF
Agricultural Handler Exposure Task Force
Determined the exposure to agricultural workers who mix, load, and apply pesticides.
ARTF
Agricultural Re-Entry Task Force
Determined exposure to agricultural workers who come in contact with crop foliage after pesticide application.
ORETF
Outdoor Residential Exposure Task Force
Determined the exposure to lawn care operators and homeowners who mix, load, and apply pesticides, and exposure to adults and children who enter a treated turf area.