The Environmental Protection Agency has narrowed a rule to protect individuals from pesticide spraying by establishing one 25-foot “Application Exclusion Zone” for all ground spray applications and limiting AEZ’s to the boundaries of the agricultural establishment.
 
The agency also will exempt farm owners and family members from requirements to stay out of the spray area so long as they shelter in place during pesticide applications. An AEZ is an area where workers and other individuals cannot be when outdoor pesticide spraying is taking place.
 
The agency said it was making the changes, which had been opposed by farmworker advocacy organizations and some state attorneys general, to “clarify and simplify” the requirements, which some state regulatory agencies had said were difficult to enforce.
 
Farmworker Justice, which had expressed concerns about the proposal, said it could not immediately respond to the rule but would have a statement "soon."
 
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