Farming

Practical Solutions for Pesticide Safety

Handheld pesticide application takes place in farming and forestry work, and unintentional exposures can be common. Few evidence-based and practical solutions have been developed and shared across these industries.

Project Overview

PNASH works with farmers, educators, and researchers across the Northwest to test and develop solutions originally developed by growers and workers for themselves. We have expanded from our original airblast application systems, to now include handheld and greenhouse applications. Each solution is assessed for the goals:

A Multi-Level Approach to Heat-Related Illness Prevention for Agricultural Workers

This project proposes to develop and evaluate a multi-level approach to heat-related illness (HRI) prevention in agricultural workers. The intervention will develop tools to prevent the negative health effects of prolonged heat for individuals (knowledge and behaviors), workplaces (policies and practices), and communities (homes).

The Healthy Dairy Worker Study

Dairy workers are commonly exposed to microbes and allergens on the job. However, little is known about whether these exposures provide health benefits or contribute to an increased risk of illness. The ‘hygiene hypothesis,’ suggests that exposure to microbes on farms may have immune benefits.

Project Overview

Notification of Pesticide Applications to Minimize Workplace Exposures

Farmworker exposure to agricultural pesticide drift is a high priority concern for public health. In May 2014, the Washington Department of Health (WA DOH) alerted state agencies and growers of a spike in pesticide spray drift illness cases among orchard workers. Over a two-month period, approximately 60 individuals were exposed to pesticides in 15 drift events, which is equal to the number of cases that the agency normally sees over the course of an entire year.