Revised respirator descriptions for pesticide labels: EPA seeks comment on draft

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency has released a draft of its revised respirator descriptions for pesticide labels and is seeking public comment.

According to a March 23 agency press release, the revisions are intended to:

• Bring respirator descriptions for pesticide labels into agreement with NIOSH respirator language.
• Ensure employers and pesticide handlers have adequate information for proper respirator identification and purchase.
• Remove outdated statements citing nonexistent respirators.
• Clarify and update language to assist with compliance.

EPA plans to update the corresponding chapter of the Label Review Manual after reviewing submitted comments, the release states. Once revisions are released, the agency will request that registrants who submit labels for other reasons revise their personal protective equipment statements to include updated descriptions. Registrants wishing only to revise PPE statements to reflect the new respirator descriptions must submit a fast-track amendment with the changes. For existing products not otherwise updated, EPA will require that labels with revised respirator submissions be submitted during the registration review process.

Comments on the draft are due May 22.