Pesticide Definitions

Air Blast and Air Boom Spray:

Airblast sprayers direct the spray mixture from nozzles into an air stream which transports the spray droplets to the target. A large volume of spray mist carried by air penetrates dense foliage by way of a pulverized cloud. Insecticides and fungicides are often applied to larger plants with more foliage and may require finer droplets to obtain good coverage of the foliage.

Pesticide Drift:

Spray or dust drift is the physical movement of pesticide droplets or particles through the air at the time of pesticide application or soon thereafter from the target site to any non- or off-target site. Many of these droplets can be so small that they stay suspended in air and are carried by air currents until they contact a surface or drop to the ground. A number of factors influence drift, including weather conditions, topography, the crop or area being sprayed, application equipment and methods, and decisions by the applicator.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

As defined by the EPA, Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that relies on a combination of common-sense practices.

Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM)

An effective and environmentally sensitive approach to weed management that uses non-toxics alternatives and mechanical removal as the first approach to weed control, and uses herbicides only if other solutions have been proven ineffective.

Protective No-spray (Buffer) Zone:

A no-spray buffer zone is an area in which direct application of the pesticide is prohibited; this area is specified in distance between the closest point of direct pesticide application and the nearest boundary of a site to be protected. For example, a no-spray zone of 100 feet to protect a specified site would require the applicator to leave a distance of ½ mile (2,640 feet) between the point of spray application and the nearest boundary of the specified protected school site.