and promotes the interests of crofting in Scotland
to secure the future of crofting.
Important changes to Pesticide Rules
19/03/2014
If you use pesticides then you will need to be aware of an important forthcoming change in the rules of pesticide use under the Grandfather Rights (GFRs) exemption.
The GFR exemption currently allows anyone born before December 31, 1964 to use pesticides authorised for professional use on their own or employer’s land without having to hold a certificate of competence, as long as they are suitably trained and competent for their job.
However, this exemption will only continue until November 26, 2015, after which time everyone who uses pesticides for professional use will be required to hold a certificate of competence.
This change follows new legal requirements for the use of professional pesticides (introduced under the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive) and affects all of the European Union’s Member States.
All current users of GFRs who intend to apply pesticides on their holding after November 26, 2015 will have to undertake one of the following actions:
•obtain the new certificate which has been specially developed for GFRs holders by City and Guilds – details at www.nptc.org.uk
•obtain another type of Level 2 Safe Use of Pesticide Awards offered by a designated awarding body and appropriate to the work and type of equipment used. This route must be taken if the pesticide operator intends to work as a contractor or apply pesticides to land he/she or his/her employer does not own.
Existing certificates from the Safe Use of Pesticides suite, for example PA1 and PA2, will continue to meet legal requirements.
There are also further future legal changes of which you should be aware of:
•From November 26, 2015 - anyone purchasing professional pesticide products must ensure that the operator who will be applying the product has a recognised certificate.
•From November 26, 2016 - equipment used to apply pesticides that is less than 5 years old must have a National Sprayer Testing Scheme certificate. An approved examiner can be found at www.nsts.org.uk. Handheld equipment does not need to be tested but should be regularly examined against a checklist and a record kept.
Operators are strongly encouraged to read further information on these important changes on the Scottish Government’s pesticide web pages at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/farmingrural/Agriculture/Environment/Pesticides
