Pesticides classifications

Chapter 5 discusses the different pesticide classification schemes, the different methods used to estimate their toxicity, and the specific mode of action of the different chemical groups of pesticides. This chapter also discusses the three main functional groups of pesticides (insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides) and the characteristics of various products in each group. 

According to chemical type pesticide classification includes organophosphates, N-methyl carbamates, chlorinated hydrocarbons, bisdithiocarbamates, phenoxyaliphatic acids, phenol derivatives, etc. 

In this chapter, the classification of industrial products for transportation under present DOT regulations and disposal classifications under RCRA will be discussed. A brief discussion of pesticide classification under FIFRA is also presented. It must be kept in mind that regulations are a living set of rules which are frequently modified by amendments, deletions and new definitions. Thus, while an attempt has been made to present the subject of product classification in a manner that will be affected as little as possible by the process of regulatory change, this is clearly not entirely possible. The reader must be aware of this fact and of his responsibility for keeping abreast of any new developments in this field. 

Regulate the classification, provision of safety data sheets, labelling and packaging of substances and preparations dangerous for supply. There are specific exceptions, e.g. medicines, pesticides, wastes, radioactive substances or preparations. 

WHO (World Health Organization). 1996. International Programme on Chemical Safety IPCS) The WHO Recommended Classification of Pesticides by Hazard and Guidelines to Classification 1996-1997. Geneva. 

Pesticide—General classification of chemicals specifically developed and produced for use in the control of agricultural and public health pests. 

FIFRA23 imposes a system of pesticide product registrations. Such requirements include premarket review of potential health and environmental effects before a pesticide can be introduced in the United States, reregistration of products introduced prior to the enactment of FIFRA to assess their safety in light of current standards, and classification of pesticides for restricted or general use. Restricted products can be used only by those whose competence has been certified by a state program. 

The long-term widespread use of DDT over a number of years demonstrates one typical Soviet trick - abusing loopholes in the rules. DDT was actively used for decades, while not being on lists of permitted substances, a situation condoned by the Health and Epidemiological Services and their on-site agencies. Pesticide use systematically was not in accordance with the permissible standards in the USSR. In 1976 the USSR introduced a System of Labor Safety Standards Harmful Substances, Classification and Overall Safety Requirements, according to which all harmful substances were broken down into four risk classes, taking into account several different indices (table 1.5). 

Under the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA), the U.S. EPA evaluates the potential for people to be exposed to more than one pesticide at a time from a group of chemicals with an identified common mechanism of toxicity. As part of the examinations, to clarify whether some or all of the pyrethroids share a common mechanism of toxicity, a comparative FOB (functional observational battery) studies with 12 pyrethroids were carried out under standardized conditions [15]. The FOB was evaluated at peak effect time following oral administration of non-lethal doses of pyrethroids to rats using com oil as vehicle. Four principal components were observed in the FOB data [22], Two of these components described behaviors associated with CS syndrome (lower body temperature, excessive salivation, impaired mobility) and the others described behaviors associated with the T syndrome (elevated body temperature, tremor myoclonus). From the analysis, pyrethroids can be divided into two main groups (Type I T syndrome and Type II CS syndrome) and a third group (Mixed Type) that did not induce a clear typical response. Five other pyrethroids were also classified by an FOB study conducted in the same manner [16]. The results of these classifications are shown in Table 1. The FOB results for all non-cyano pyrethroids were classified as T syndrome, and the results of four ot-cyano pyrethroids were classified as CS syndrome however, three of the ot-cyano pyrethroids, esfenvalerate, cyphenothrin, and fenpropathrin, were classified as Mixed Type. 

EPA. 1988b. Pesticide registration and classification procedures. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Code of Federal Regulations. 40 CFR 152.175. 

This comprehensive definition makes it elear that a wide number of substances may be eonsidered to be pestieides, and that the eommonality among all pestieides is their ability to provide eontrol over pests. A variety of classifications for pesticides have been developed that are specific for the type of pest controlled. Insecticides, for example, are pesticides that control insects, while herbicides control weeds and fungicides control plant diseases (molds). In addition to these major classifications of pesticides, there are many other classifications. These include nematicides (for nematode control), acaracides (mite control), rodenticides (rodent control), molluscicide (snail and slug control), algacides (algal control), bacteriocides (bacterial control), and defoliants (leaf control). 

WHO (2005) The World Health Organization recommended classification of pesticides by hazard. 

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