Monitoring And Reporting Problems

Monitoring the Application Process

Monitoring and managing spraying operations is critical in the control of pests and diseases. Timing of control measures to be taken is of major importance as certain pests, e.g. thrips or bollworm, or diseases, such as blackspot, can cause severe damage to the citrus crop within days if not controlled in time.

The following steps must be taken and monitored continuously:

• Ensure that all necessary information, such as fields to be sprayed, spray covering and CPP attributes (especially toxicity) are well communicated to tractor drivers and other personnel involved, as well as other workers that may be active in the area.
• Check that all personnel concerned are wearing suitable protective clothing. Consider the toxicity of the CPP as indicated on the product label.
• Check that the correct CPPs are used and that each spraying tank is mixed with the correct concentration as recommended on the label.
• If applicable, check pH of the water and adjust with a buffer if necessary.
• You must check that the accelerator is set at the correct revolutions to obtain the desired PTO speed (require 540 rpm) are attained on the tractor.
• Check whether the pump on the spraying machine is operating at the correct pressure.
• Check that correct discs and spinners have been inserted into the nozzles.
• Check that the agitator of the spraying machine is functioning adequately and that the CPPs placed inside the spray tank are well mixed.
• Check spray coverage on the trees and ensure that the physical wetting is as desired.
• Ensure that all nozzles are spraying onto the tree. You may have to close or alter the direction of nozzles.
• Check that the quantity of litres being applied per tree is within an acceptable range of dosage required. This can be done by comparing the number of tanks used against the number of trees sprayed.
• Check that the number of tanks sprayed and the quantity of CPP used coincide.
• Observe climatic conditions and react accordingly. Stop spraying if it starts raining or is too windy or too hot.
• Finally, the effectiveness of the spray against the target pest must be determined. In the case of thrips or bollworm, results should be noticeable in 24 hours.

Reporting Problems and Unusual Occurrences

Many of the points referred to above are simple. It is however very important to consult with the supervisor or crop protection manager if you are unsure about anything.

Management must prescribe reporting procedures to all employees to ensure that these procedures are obeyed. The procedures must be applied and enforced always. Do not wait, report problems or unusual occurrences immediately. Rather be safe than sorry.

Emergency situations occur even where every precaution has been taken to prevent it from happening. It is essential that all authorised personnel handling CPPs are aware of the steps that must be taken in case of an emergency.

Spills, leakages and poisoning are the most common emergency situations that occur where CPPs are handled.

Click here to download a handout that explains procedures for dealing with minor spills and leakages.

Click here to download a handout that explains procedure in case of poisoning.

Click here to view a video that explains emergency medicine, approach to poisoning.

Incident Reporting

An incident normally refers to an accident or a near accident at the workplace where:

• Workers were or could have been injured or killed;
• Safety was compromised; or
• Property was damaged

To understand the causes of the accident, an incident report is written by the supervisor or manager responsible for the work being conducted. Incident reports are necessary as it compels persons involved to explore every angle of the accident (or near accident) to prevent any similar accidents in future. Serious accidents are to be reported to the Department of Labour who will conduct their own investigation, which may lead to the prosecution of the responsible person if negligence is found to be the cause.

An incident report should at least contain the following information:

• Date of occurrence
• Place of occurrence
• Name of department manager
• Name(s) of injured person(s)
• Description of injuries, illness or damage to property
• Full description of how the accident took place
• Names of witnesses to the accident

Pesticides And Environmental Factors

Water is the most commonly carrier used in pesticides application. The quality of non-tap water on farms etc. is variable and the water obtained from some sources can cause problems. Most pesticide formulations compensate for the use of hard water. Ideally the carrier water should be clear, colourless, odourless and with a neutral pH. The spray mixture must be applied directly to the plant to avoid potential chemical interactions. A number of factors which should be considered when selecting a water source.

Solids in the water - Water with sediments in suspension may block nozzles. Sediments normally consist of fine organic matter and clays. The pesticide’s active ingredient will bind to these, thus being removed from the spray mixture.

Water pH - Some pesticides are hydrolysed under acid or alkaline conditions thereby neutralising the pesticide. x Salts in water - Excessive salts in water may cause damage to the crop plant when sprayed onto the leaves.

Water "softness" - "Hard" water contains calcium or magnesium salts which can lead to mixing problems and reducing the stability of suspensions and emulsions.