Department of Pesticide Regulation |
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Mary-Ann Warmerdam Director |
Edmund G. Brown Jr. Governor |
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February 8, 2011 |
ENF 11-03 WHS 11-01 |
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TO: |
County Agricultural Commissioners | |
SUBJECT: |
REVISION TO VOLUME 5, INVESTIGATION PROCEDURES, PESTICIDE USE ENFORCEMENT PROGRAM STANDARDS COMPENDIUM, INVESTIGATIONS OF PESTICIDE RELATED SUICIDES/SUICIDE ATTEMPTS |
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This letter announces a revision to Volume 5, Investigation Procedures, of the Pesticide Use Enforcement Program Standards Compendium (Compendium). The updated volume is also available online at www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/enforce/compend/vol_5/invstprc.htm. The enclosed revision includes two, two-sided replacement pages:
Pursuant to the three-way Cooperative Agreement between the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), the California Association of County Agricultural Commissioners and Sealers (CACASA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region IX (U.S. EPA), certain pesticide incidents are categorized as priority investigations. Suicide attempts requiring hospitalization and suicides are included among the human effects criteria that have required a priority investigation by County Agricultural Commissioners (CAC). The Cooperative Agreement specifically notes that investigations of suicides and suicide attempts should follow the procedures outlined in the DPR Investigation Procedures Manual, which is now the Pesticide Use Enforcement Program Standards Compendium Volume 5, Investigation Procedures. Background Over the years, DPR's Pesticide Illness Surveillance Program (PISP) scientists have noticed from review of the Pesticide Episode Investigation Reports involving suicides and attempted suicides, that despite investigator's best efforts, the success in obtaining pertinent information and/or evidence is rather limited and the amount of time and effort that CAC staff spends on these investigations is not commensurate with the information and/or evidence obtained. More often than not, the information and/or evidence obtained by the CAC investigators are already available in initiating documents such as the California Poison Control System generated Pesticide Illness Reports. Revised Procedure Future Changes The PISP staff will continue to collect, record, and classify all details of all cases involving suicide and attempted suicide and include these cases in the PISP database using information obtained from initiating documents. On occasion, CACs may receive reports of suicides and attempted suicides through local channels, for example HazMat responders. In these situations, DPR requests that the CACs contact WH&S's PISP staff about these incidents to ensure they are captured in the PISP database. We believe that by eliminating investigations of pesticide related suicides and attempted suicides, CACs will be able to use their resources more effectively in other program areas. Please contact your Enforcement Branch Liaison or Mr. George Farnsworth with questions or comments at George.Farnsworth@cdpr.ca.gov, or 916-445-4163. |
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Sincerely, | ||
Original Signature by: | Original Signature by: |
Nan Gorder, Ph.D. Chief, Enforcement Branch 916-324-4100 |
Sue Edmiston Chief, Worker Health and Safety Branch 916-445-4222 |
Enclosures: Replacement Pages 15 - 16.2, PDF Table of Contents, PDF |
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cc: Ms. Pam Cooper, U.S. EPA, Region IX |
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1001 I Street ·
P.O. Box 4015 · Sacramento,
California 95812-4015 ·
www.cdpr.ca.gov A Department of the California Environmental Protection Agency |
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