The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service will host a three-day Pesticide Applicator Training for Public Health program for city employees at multiple locations statewide, beginning in late February.

Mosquitoes on cotton in a lab. Participants in the Pesticide Applicator Training for Public Health program will be able to learn how to safely apply pesticides for controlling mosquitoes and other pests in the state's cities, towns and counties.
Participants in the Pesticide Applicator Training for Public Health program will be able to learn how to safely apply pesticides for controlling mosquitoes and other pests in the state’s cities, towns and counties. (Texas A&M AgriLife photo by Courtney Sacco)

The objective of the trainings is to help pesticide applicators who work in Texas cities and counties and are responsible for mosquito control to receive the needed training for their Texas Department of Agriculture noncommercial political subdivision pesticide licenses, said Sonja Swiger, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension entomologist and professor in the Texas A&M Department of Entomology, Stephenville.

Each session will be held from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. on the first and second day and from 8 a.m.-noon on the third day of the trainings. The cost of registration is $50, and attendees can register at https://tx.ag/PesticideAppTraining24.

The trainings are open only to those who work for a political subdivision of the state of Texas or a federal agency operating within the state. Attendance is mandatory for both days.

Breakfast and lunch will be provided on the first and second days, and manuals and all test preparation materials are included.

Training dates and locations

  • Feb. 27-29: Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Weslaco, 2415 U.S. Business Highway 83, Weslaco.
  • May 28-30: Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Dallas, 17360 Coit Road, Dallas.
  • Sept. 24-26: Rosenberg Civic Center, 3825 State Highway 36, Rosenberg.
  • Nov. 19-21: Christopher Hall, 1602 Thousand Oaks Drive, San Antonio.

Training topics

Day 1:

The first day’s topics will be led by Don Renchie, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension specialist and program leader for the Agricultural and Environmental Safety Unit, Bryan-College Station, or Mark Matocha, Ph.D., AgriLife Extension pesticide program specialist, AgriLife Extension Agricultural and Environmental Safety Unit, Bryan-College Station.

  • Federal and state laws and regulations on pesticides
  • Toxicology
  • Pesticide exposure
  • Residues
  • Pesticide labels
  • Environmental concerns
  • Pesticide formulations
  • Principles of pesticide safety

Day 2:

  • Public health pest overview – Swiger
  • Mosquito ecology – Swiger
  • Vector borne diseases – Swiger
  • Monitoring mosquitoes – Swiger
  • Mosquito control – Swiger
  • Filth flies and blood feeding flies – Swiger
  • Fleas – Swiger
  • Rodents and rodent control for public health –  Janet Hurley, AgriLife Extension integrated pest management program specialist, Dallas.

Day 3:

  • Participants take exam.

For more information, contact Susan Keith at [email protected].

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