By Scott Angle
@IFAS_VP
There’s a lot happening with pesticides right now – EPA updates, label changes, new testing rules and more. Our foremost UF/IFAS pesticide expert will be at the Florida Ag Expo on Nov. 7 in Wimauma to give you the latest.
For Brett Bultemeier of our Pesticide Information Office (PIO), the Expo at the UF/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) is part of a road show about the changes that he’s been on all year.
There’s a lot at stake with using pesticides safely. Improper use can hurt you, your family, and your business.
A major change in the coming year is in pesticide certification exams. Traditionally, you’ve been able to take the exams at UF/IFAS Extension offices. We considered that a win for you because of the convenience and a win for us because it gives us a chance to hear from you about what else we can do to keep you profitable.
For computer-related reasons, which Bultemeier will go into during his seminar (some of which you can also read about here), there will be new testing sites next year. Bultemeier can give you a preview of how to get ahead of the changes and how to make sure you and your co-workers have access to the exam.
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs is the regulator for pesticide safety, and it has been a great partner. FDACS is considering new testing vendors, alternate sites and remote proctoring to keep testing going without skipping a beat.
In the end, I think the change will work to your benefit.
Not having to spend time and resources on testing means we can do more to help you prepare for the exam. We’re educators. The time and expertise of our county agents and other Extension employees is better spent getting you to pass the exam than watching you take it.
The PIO calculated that UF/IFAS Extension personnel spend more than 20,000 hours a year proctoring. We could use that time to do more tutoring, teaching, producing educational materials, hosting seminars and spending time in the field with our growers. In other words, doing the things our agents are really good at.
Extension personnel can even put more time into the programming to earn the CEUs you need if you don’t want to have to take the exam again. They can focus on helping you be safer and more effective with pesticides, in part by following all the rules.
The Expo is more than a PIO show. It features educational talks, field tours, a trade show and a free lunch. You can also meet UF/IFAS faculty who work to help solve your challenges.
If you can’t make it GCREC on Nov. 7, you can still get important information from the PIO on your schedule:
- Visit the PIO website.
- Call the office at 352-392-4721.
- Call Bultemeier’s direct line at 352-294-6941.
- Email Bultemeier at bwbult@ufl.edu.
- Subscribe to Bultemeier’s blog.
J. Scott Angle is the University of Florida’s Senior Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources and leader of the UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS).
