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Air Monitoring

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Monitoring for Pesticides in the Air

The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) monitors for pesticides in the air as part of its continuous evaluation of pesticides. The Air Monitoring Network has been in operation since 2011and monitors for 35 pesticides and 5 pesticide breakdown products in ambient air.

Along with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, we analyze the data collected. This information is part of our evaluation of a pesticide’s risks and impacts before and after a pesticide is registered for use in California to evaluate and improve protective measures for people and the environment.

Watch Video: DPR Air Monitoring Program

Protecting Air from Pesticides

Air Monitoring Locations

We operate five monitoring stations in the following California communities:

Delhi (Merced County)
Oxnard (Ventura County)
Pajaro (Monterey County)
Santa Maria (Santa Barbara County)
Shafter (Kern County)

We selected these communities due to their proximity to high agricultural use of pesticides, based on Pesticide Use Reports.

In addition to the five monitoring stations, we also operate a station specifically to monitor 1,3-D in the following community:

Parlier (Fresno County)

DPR received additional funding to expand its ambient air monitoring efforts. This funding provides support for up to four new monitoring stations in the Air Monitoring Network. DPR is soliciting feedback from the public on its proposal to expand the Air Monitoring Network. The department has drafted a prioritization framework that provides an overview of the process for the proposed expansion. This prioritization framework includes a series of focused questions, which we are requesting public comment on.

Prioritization Framework – English/Spanish

Please visit our public comment portal, SmartComment, to provide comments on the prioritization of counties and communities targeted for expansion.

Submit a Public Comment

The technical basis for the prioritization framework is provided in detail:

Air Monitoring Network Site Selection: Standard Operating Procedure

A map of proposed sites for the Air Monitoring Network expansion and an accessible Excel file version of map below:

Access the Data (Air Monitoring Network Expansion Map)

The purpose of the map is to provide information about the proposed potential monitoring sites outlined in the prioritization framework document.

The map includes four layers:

Air Monitoring Network (AMN) Monitoring Sites February 2026: The current AMN monitoring sites as of February 2026.
2026 Proposed Potential Monitoring Sites: The proposed potential monitoring sites for the Air Monitoring Network as outlined in the prioritization framework.
AB 617 Community Boundaries: California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) map of AB617 selected communities and air districts which have AB617 community steering committees.
California County Boundaries, including the ranked counties highlighted.

Air Monitoring Reports

To view the current draft or final Air Monitoring Reports, please visit our Reports Directory.

Reports Directory

To view current public comment opportunities, please visit our public comment portal, SmartComment.

Submit a Public Comment

Pesticide Air Monitoring Results Database

We maintain a Pesticide Air Monitoring Results Database containing both preliminary and published data from pesticide air monitoring studies conducted throughout California. The resources below include the most recent annual report containing the results of samples collected from air monitoring site locations.

Reports Directory

The database contains results through June 30,2025, and was last updated on December 30, 2025.

Learn How to Use the Database

Accessible Excel file version of CSV file and tabs (Results and Locations) below:

Access the Data (Pesticide Air Monitoring Results Database)

Access the Data (Pesticide Air Monitoring Results Database) as CSV File

Instructions to access Pesticide Air Monitoring Results Database:

Access the charts by selecting any table headers, data points, map location, etc.
Air Monitoring Network (AMN) is study 257 and 1,3-dichloropropene monitoring is study 309

Seasonal Air Monitoring Studies

In collaboration with the California Air Resources Board, we conduct seasonal ambient monitoring studies around high-use areas in close proximity to communities identified through the AB 617 process. Intensive seasonal ambient monitoring studies are normally conducted in multiple high-use communities during the high-use season for individual pesticides and can last anywhere from 4-16 weeks, depending on the study.

Seasonal ambient air monitoring studies produce data that is used to estimate concentrations associated with subchronic exposures. Data collected from these monitoring studies assists us in our assessment of the potential health risks associated with pesticide use, developing measures to mitigate risks, and measuring the effectiveness of regulatory requirements.

Find seasonal study reports on our Reports Directory.

Reports Directory

Toxic Air Contaminant Program

California’s Toxic Air Contaminant Act created the statutory framework for the evaluation and control of chemicals as toxic air contaminants (TACs). In implementing the law, we must determine the levels of human exposure in the environment and estimate the potential human health risk from those exposures. Our evaluation report undergoes review by other government agencies, the public, and a multi-agency, scientific review panel.

Based on the evaluation, the Director of DPR determines whether the candidate is a TAC. If the Director determines the pesticide meets the criteria, we designate the pesticide a TAC in regulation and add it to the TAC list. The law also requires us to administratively designate pesticides as toxic air contaminants if they are substances listed as Hazardous Air Pollutants (HAPs) under section 7412 of Title 42 of the United States Code.

Once a pesticide is a designated TAC, it enters the control, or mitigation, phase. In the mitigation phase, we investigate the need for, and appropriate degree of, control for the TAC. If exposure should be reduced, we must develop control measures to reduce emissions to levels that adequately protect public health.

We may use other legal authority to implement control measures, particularly for pesticides that pose an immediate health threat.

TAC list from California Code of Regulations

1,3-Dichloropropene Field Fumigation Requirements

These resources contain the regulatory requirements and documents for TAC, 1,3-D.

1-3 Field Fumigation Requirements

Approved Tarpaulin List

Table of Revised Application Factor (AF)

1,3-Dichloropropene Quarterly Use Summary

The 1,3- Dichloropropene (1,3-D) pesticide use report data shows the summary of 1,3-D
use records by date, month, crop, county, and township.

Data from January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2025. Updated on January 23, 2026.

Access the Data (1,3-Dichloropropene Use Summary)

Accessible PDF versions of tabs (1,3-Dichloropropene Quarterly Use Summary) below:

Statewide 1,3-D Records

Monthly Summary

Township Cap Summary

Setback Calculator and Broadcast Equivalent

The setback table determines setback distances and application block sizes based on county, field fumigation method, application month and rate.

The broadcast equivalent calculates 1,3-D and chloropicrin broadcast equivalent application rates based on planted area, application block, center-to-center and bottom width distance, and product application rate.

Accessible PDF versions of tabs (Setback Calculator and Broadcast Equivalent) below:

Broadcast Equivalent

Chloropicrin Regulatory Requirements

These resources contain the regulatory requirements and documents for TAC, Chloropicrin.

Additional Labeling Requirements for Use of All Products Containing Chloropicrin as an Active Ingredient in California

Approved Tarpaulins

Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) Emissions

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) contribute to the formation of ground-level ozone, which is harmful to human health and vegetation when present at high enough concentrations. The federal Clean Air Act requires each state to submit a State Implementation Plan (SIP) for achieving and maintaining federal ambient air quality standards, including the standard for ozone. Nonattainment areas (NAAs) are regions in California that do not meet either federal or state ambient air quality standards.

We are responsible for agricultural and commercial structural pesticide products, and the Air Resources Board (ARB) is responsible for pesticides in consumer products.

VOC nonattainment areas (NAAs) include:

Sacramento Metro
San Joaquin Valley
South Coast
Southeast Desert
Ventura

How to Calculate Non-Fumigant VOC Emissions

Use our VOC emissions calculator, which we sourced from agricultural applications of non-fumigant pesticides. You can calculate VOC emissions from single or multiple pesticide products and applications.

The VOC emissions calculated here rely on the product’s emission potential (EP). EP is the percentage of the product assumed to potentially contribute to atmospheric VOCs. The benchmark method for estimating EPs is a laboratory test called thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). DPR has alternative methods for estimating EPs in the absence of TGA data. These are standard reproducible methods for determining product EPs, and so they provide the ability to accurately assess relative changes in VOC emissions from year to year. EPs may overestimate the absolute value of VOC emissions under certain circumstances because they do not account for other factors that can influence emissions, such as application methods or soil absorption.

Calculate VOC Emissions

Regulations for Reducing VOC Emissions from Nonfumigant Pesticides

Regulations (CCR Title 3, 6880) to reduce emissions of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from nonfumigant pesticides apply to high-VOC products containing abamectin, chlorpyrifos, gibberellins, or oxyfluorfen when used in the San Joaquin Valley ozone nonattainment area during the ozone season May 1 through October 31. The regulations do not apply to low-VOC products for any active ingredients.

The prohibitions on the high-VOC products will be in effect between the May 1 through October 31 period during 2025.

Sales and use requirements for high-VOC products – The regulations (CCR Title 3, 6884) include requirements for pest control dealers selling a high-VOC product for use in the San Joaquin Valley and also include requirements for agricultural pest control advisers and growers prior to using a high-VOC product.

Criteria and Lists of High-VOC, Low-VOC, and Excluded Products (updated March 27, 2025)

VOC Annual Reports

To view the current draft or final VOC report, please visit our Reports Directory.

Reports Directory

We post a draft VOC report to provide an opportunity for public comment. To view current public comment opportunities, please visit our public comment portal, SmartComment.

Submit a Public Comment

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Still have a Question or Need More Information?

Please contact us with questions or visit the Contact Us page on our website to connect with other programs at DPR.

Email: Air.Program@cdpr.ca.gov

Department of Pesticide Regulation
1001 I Street, P.O. Box 4015
Sacramento, CA 95812-4015

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