General Herbicide Use
– Whenever feasible, reduce vegetation biomass by mowing, cutting, or grubbing it before applying herbicide to reduce the amount of herbicide needed.
– Chemical control of invasive plants and animals will only be used when other methods are determined to be ineffective or infeasible.
– Herbicide use will be evaluated on a project-by-project basis with consideration of (and preference given toward) integrated pest management (IPM) strategies wherever possible. See University of California statewide IPM Program for guidance documents
(http://ipm.ucanr.edu/index.html).
– Chemical use is restricted in accordance with approved application methods and BMPs designed to prevent exposure to non-target areas and organisms.
– Any chemical considered for control of invasive species must adhere to all regulations, be approved for use in California, its application must adhere to all regulations per the California Environmental Protection Agency, and must be applied by a licensed applicator under all necessary state and local permits.
– Use herbicides only in a context where all treatments are considered, and various methods are used individually or in concert to maximize the benefits while reducing undesirable effects and applying the lowest legal effective application rate, unless site specific analysis determines a lower rate is needed to reduce non-target impacts.
– Treat only the minimum area necessary for effective control. Soil-activated herbicides can be applied as long as directions on the label are followed. NOAA RC will recommend project proponents seek the advice of an Agricultural Pest Control Advisor (PCA) if they are unfamiliar with the best chemical choices and combinations for their project, even if they are only planning to use the choices described here. If the project proponent is experienced with the use of certain chemicals and chemical mixtures, this extra step may not be necessary.
– To limit the opportunity for surface water contamination with herbicide use, all projects will have a minimum buffer for ground-based broadcast application of 100 feet, and the minimum buffer with a backpack sprayer is 15 feet (aerial application is not included in the proposed action).
– The licensed Applicator will follow recommendations for all California restrictions, including wind speed, rainfall, temperature inversion, and ground moisture for each herbicide used. In addition, herbicides will not be applied when rain is forecast to occur within 24 hours, or during a rain event or other adverse weather conditions (e.g., snow, fog).
– Herbicide adjuvants are limited to water or nontoxic or practically nontoxic vegetable oils and agriculturally registered, food grade colorants (e.g., Dynamark U.V. (red or blue), Aquamark blue or Hi-Light blue) to be used to detect drift or other unintended exposure to waterways.
– Any herbicides will be transported to and from the worksite in tightly sealed waterproof carrying containers. The licensed Applicator will carry a spill cleanup kit. Should a spill occur, people will be kept away from affected areas until clean-up is complete.
– Herbicides will be mixed more than 150 feet, as practicable, from any water of the state to minimize the risk of an accidental discharge. Impervious material will be placed beneath mixing areas in such a manner as to contain any spills associated with mixing/refilling.
– The licensed pesticide applicator will keep a record of all plants/areas treated, amounts and types of herbicide used, and dates of application, and pesticide application reports must be completed within 24 hours of application and submitted to applicable agencies for review. Wind and other weather data will be monitored and reported for all pesticide application reports.