National Pesticide Information Center

The National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) is a collaboration between Oregon State University and the United States Environmental Protection Agency to provide objective, science-based information about pesticides, the recognition and management of pesticide poisonings, toxicology and environmental chemistry. It's funded through a cooperative agreement that is competitively awarded to an eligible applicant every 3–5 years.

NPIC answers questions by phone (1-800-858-7378) Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 12:00 pm PST (11:00 am – 3:00 pm ET), and also by email (npic@ace.orst.edu). Pesticide information is also available at NPIC's website in English and Spanish.

Pesticide Specialists have science degrees in diverse fields. Frequently asked questions include the health effects of pesticide exposure, questions about laboratory analyses, how to pursue investigation of pesticide incidents, emergency treatment information, pesticide label compliance, the environmental fate of pesticides, and clean-up/disposal procedures. NPIC produces pesticide fact sheets, frequently-asked questions and podcasts that reflect topics of public interest.

NPIC can answer questions in over 170 different languages including Spanish, Mandarin, French and German.

The National Pesticide Information Center was previously known as the "National Pesticide Telecommunication Network".[1]

History

The program was first established in 1978 as a toll free telephone service at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center [2] to assist medical professionals with the recognition and management of pesticide poisonings.[3] The service was later expanded to the general public.[4] In the mid 1980s the NPIC moved to Texas Tech University and became the National Pesticide Telecommunications Network.[5] In 1995 the program was moved to Oregon State University (OSU) and the name was later changed to the National Pesticide Information Center in 2001.

Recent Highlights

Incident Reporting

The National Pesticide Information Center does not have regulatory authority in relation to pesticides.[7] Pesticide regulatory agencies in many states are delegated primary enforcement responsibilities for pesticide violations by the U.S. EPA. However, in addition to being reported to state regulators, pesticide incidents involving people, pets, wildlife (including bees), or the environment can be reported to the NPIC.[8] Incident reports collected by the NPIC, which exclude personally identifiable information, are provided to the U.S. EPA through scheduled reporting and by request from U.S. EPA and partner agencies. A veterinary incident reporting portal is also available to professional veterinary staff seeking to report a pesticide incident involving an animal.[9]

References

  1. ↑ "National Pesticide Information Center". Retrieved 2007-09-21.
  2. ↑ "NPIC 2012 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  3. ↑ "Funding Opportunity Announcement: National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) (EPA-OPP-13-003)" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  4. ↑ "Funding Opportunity Announcement: National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC) (EPA-OPP-13-003)" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  5. ↑ "NPIC 2012 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  6. ↑ "NPIC 2012 Annual Report" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  7. ↑ "Pesticides: Regulating Pesticides". Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  8. ↑ "OPP Report on Incident Information: The Baseline" (PDF). Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  9. ↑ "Report Adverse Effects (Incidents)". Retrieved 2014-06-13.

http://npic.orst.edu/about.html http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/factsheets/npic-2013-final-rfa-9.10.13.pdf http://npic.orst.edu/reports/NPIC12AR.pdf http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/regulating/ http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/ppdc/2007/oct2007/session10-finalrpt.pdf http://www2.epa.gov/pets/report-adverse-effects-incidents

United States Environmental Protection Agency

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