Announcement for a Pesticide Risk Reduction Education Short Course on Oʻahu, October 16 - 17, 2018

Posted July 30, 2018

LOCATION

Pearl City (zip code 96782) on Oʻahu

DATES & TIMES

October 16 - 17, 2018. 8:15 AM - 4:00 PM each day.

INTRODUCTION

This in-depth two-day short course is about handling pesticides, including herbicides, in ways that will reduce risks to people and our environment. It will be conducted by an instructor from the College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. The course does not include the exam for restricted use pesticide certification. (If you want to take one of the certification exams offered by the Hawaiʻi Department of Agriculture, read the note “EXAMS FOR CERTIFICATION” near the bottom of this page.)

WHO WOULD BENEFIT?

The course would benefit people who want to be better informed about handling pesticides properly or prepare for the Hawaii Department of Agriculture’s examination for restricted use pesticide certification.

Certified applicators will not earn re-certification credits by attending this course.

TOPICS

The instructor will discuss the topics covered by the study guides in the basic or “core” study packet, which provide general information common to all categories of certification exams. Certain topics such as identification and life cycles of specific pests and specialized equipment and calculations are covered only by the study guides in “category-specific” study packets, not in the short course. So if you plan to take a certification exam, you should also study the “category-specific” study guides, such as those in the “Private 1,2,3” study packet, the “Commercial 2 Forest pest control” study packet, or the “Commercial 7a,b,c,d,e pest control” study packet. (The complete list of categories of study packets is at https://cms.ctahr.hawaii.edu/epp/Education/Study-Guide-Packets.)

The basic or “core” topics to be covered in the short course include:

Types & formulations of pesticides
Laws & regulations about buying, storing, transporting, applying, and disposing of pesticides
Importance of a pesticide product’s labeling and safety data sheet (SDS).
Integrated pest management (IPM) concepts and components.
Common pests’ general identification features & life cycles
Application methods
Main parts of common spraying equipment
Dilution and dosage instructions on pesticide labels
Calculating sizes of treatment sites
Pesticides in the environment
Hazards to pesticide handlers
Protective clothing & safety equipment
Mixing, loading, application, transport, storage, and disposal
Washing work clothing
First aid for pesticide exposure

REGISTRATION

Deadline for registration is September 18, 2018. Enrollment is limited to 20 people.

If you have a disability and may need accommodations to participate, contact the UH Agricultural Diagnostic Service Center (in Honolulu), 808-956-6706, by September 18, 2018.

Fee for registration is $100 per person. The fee is for the two days’ presentations and classroom handouts. No food or beverages will be provided. The fee for taking an exam for restricted use pesticide certification is not included. (If you plan to take one of the certification exams offered by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture, read the note “EXAMS FOR CERTIFICATION” near the bottom of this page.)

Form for registration is available either from the instructor or by downloading the blank or fillable version:

Here's the BLANK FORM. Print it. Fill it in manually. Then send it with your payment.

Here's the FILLABLE FORM. Fill it in on your computer. Print it. Then send it with your payment.

Use page 4 of the form to register. Use page 3 to order packets of printed study guides, if you need them.

STUDY GUIDES

Study guides for certification exams are not the same as the classroom handouts. You should get the study guides if you plan to study for a restricted use pesticide certification exam. The guides are offered as individual downloadable files and as printed booklets. The printed guides for a certification category are sold together as a “packet”. One complete set of study guides costs $35. But you are not required to buy the printed versions. Anyone may download them free-of-charge from https://cms.ctahr.hawaii.edu/epp/Education/Study-Guide-Packets.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Contact the Agricultural Diagnostic Service Center: ph. 808-956-6706 (Honolulu) or the instructor Charles Nagamine: ph. 808-956-6007 (Honolulu), email: cynagami@hawaii.edu, or Mail: Charles Nagamine, P.E.P.S. Dept., 3190 Maile Way, Room 307, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822.

EXAMS FOR CERTIFICATION

Test takers must make an appointment to take the exam to qualify for certification to buy or use restricted use pesticides in Hawaii. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture’s employees will sign up a test taker for a specific location, date and time. The exam fee is $25. (This fee is not included in the $100 fee for the short course.) Read more about the exams at hdoa.hawaii.gov/pi/pest/pesticide-applicator-certificationrecertification-2/

FREE BOOKLETS AVAILABLE BEFORE SHORT COURSE BEGINS

For a free copy of the booklet, “Test Your Math Skills,” contact the instructor or download it HERE. The leaflet presents exercises and answers that will help trainees refresh basic math skills needed to understand the instructor’s calculation examples. Trainees who find the exercises difficult will get more benefit from the short course if they get tutoring before the course begins. The exercises review (1) common fractions and their decimal number equivalents, (2) rounding-off, (3) percent, (4) conversions between • seconds and minutes • ounces and pounds • fluid ounces, pints, and gallons • square feet and acres, (5) reading tables, and (6) calculating square feet of rectangular areas. Test-takers must have these skills to answer some of the questions in the certification exams.

You can download another free leaflet, Practice Analyzing an Insecticide Label, HERE. Study the examples to boost your pesticide label reading skills, which you will need to plan a pesticide treatment or to prepare for the Hawaii Department of Agriculture’s restricted use pesticide certification exam.