Comparison of operator exposure for five different greenhouse spraying applications

The European Crop Protection Association (ECPA) and the Agricultural Research Centre  (CLO-DVL) joined forces in a project to stimulate the safe use of pesticides in Southern European countries. CLO-DVL optimised a method using mineral chelates as tracers on collectors. This quantitative method to evaluate spray deposits was used to compare operator exposure from several greenhouse spraying techniques.

Operator exposure measurements were of a comparative nature. Five application methods were investigated i.e. a standard spray gun with an operator walking forwards, a spray lance with an operator walking forwards and backwards, a trolley and a vehicle both with vertical spray booms. The exposure was measured at 15 different places on a coverall with patches and on gloves, using  mineral chelates as tracer elements.
The difference in exposure of the patches between the different techniques was very high. Walking backwards reduced exposure by a factor 7. The exposure on the collectors with the trolley and the vehicle, two innovative spraying techniques, was respectively 25 and 100 times lower compared with the standard
spray gun. Operator  exposure walking forward with the spray lance was about two times higher than with the spray gun.  Besides a very large difference in
exposure between the five techniques, there was also a large difference in
exposure between the various parts of the body. All of this is important in consideration of operator safety and for the parts of the body that need to be
protected best.