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Pennsylvania has the following Pesticide Applicator Categories:

Certifications granted by Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture

Contractor's license is not required.
Subcontractor's license is required.

John C.R. Tacelosky, Chief
717-772-5217
jtacelosky@state.pa.us

Directory of Pesticide Control Officials

§ 128.42. Categories of commercial and public applicators.

A commercial or public applicator applying or supervising the application of a pesticide shall be certified in one or more of the following applicator categories:

1. Agronomic crops - The use of a pesticide in the production of an agricultural crop, including tobacco, grain, soybeans and forages and the application of a pesticide to noncrop agricultural land.
2. Fruits and nuts - The use of a pesticide in the production of tree fruits, nuts and berries.
3. Vegetable crops - The use of a pesticide in the production of vegetables, including, tomatoes, cabbage and celery.
4. Agricultural animals - The use of a pesticide on animals, including beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, sheep, horses, goats, poultry or other livestock and to premises where these animals are confined.
5. Forest pest control - The use of a pesticide in a forest, forest nursery or forest seed producing area.
6. Ornamental and shade trees - The use of a pesticide in the maintenance of an ornamental tree, shrub, flower or other ornamental.
7. Lawn and turf - The use of a pesticide in the maintenance or production of lawn and turf.
8. Seed treatment - The use of a pesticide on seed.
9. Aquatic pest control - The use of a pesticide on standing or running water, excluding the use of a pesticide in a public health-related activity described in paragraph (16).
10. Right-of-way - The use of a pesticide to maintain a public road, an electrical power line, a pipeline, a railway right-of-way or a similar type of area.
11. Household and health related - The use of a pesticide in, on or around a food handling establishment, a human or nonagricultural animal dwelling, an institution such as a school or hospital, an industrial establishment, a warehouse, a grain elevator and other types of structures whether public or private. The application of a pesticide to protect a stored, processed or manufactured product is also included. The use of a fumigant, except where applied out-of-doors to a rodent burrow which does not lead into a dwelling or other structure, and except in the case of termite or other structural pest control, is included. The treatment of an emergence crevice, an ant runway or a surface to control carpenter bees or the surface application of a pesticide to a wooden box, furniture or lumber is included.
12. Wood destroying pests - The use of a pesticide to control or prevent termites, powder post beetles or other wood destroying pests infesting a residence, school, hospital, store, warehouse or other structures or structural components and an area adjacent to those structures.
13. Structural fumigation - The use of a fumigant in or to a structure for the control of pests affecting the structure or its fixtures or inhabitants.
14. Industrial weeds - The use of a pesticide to control vegetation around a structure, such as an oil tank, an industrial railway siding, an airport runway, a parking lot, a fence or an industrial building.
15. Public health vertebrate pest control - The use of a pesticide to manage and control a vertebrate pest affecting public health.
16. Public health invertebrate pest control - The use of a pesticide to manage and control an invertebrate pest affecting public health.
17. Regulatory pest control - The use of a pesticide to control an organism designated by the Commonwealth or the Federal government to be a pest requiring regulatory restrictions or control procedures to protect man or the environment.
18. Demonstration and research pest control - The use of a pesticide to demonstrate to the public the proper method of application for a pesticide and the use of a pesticide in research such as that undertaken by an extension specialist, county agent or vocational agriculture teacher.
19. Wood preservation - The use of a pesticide in wood impregnation to control or prevent fungi, insects, bacteria, marine borers and other wood destroying pests and includes pole treating or restoration and the use of a fumigant for in-place treatment of utility poles.
20. Commodity and space fumigation - The use of a fumigant in or to a structure, trailer, railcar, onboard ship, or in any type of fumigation chamber, such as under a tarpaulin for the control of pests in stored or in-transit commodities.
21. Soil fumigation - The application of a fumigant to a soil environment.
22. Interior plantscape - The use of a pesticide to control plant pests when the soil or plant to be treated is located within an enclosed structure.
23. Park or school pest control - The use of a pesticide in a campground or recreational area of a public or private park or on school property.
24. Swimming pools - The use of a pesticide in the care and maintenance of swimming pools.
25. Aerial applicator - The use of a pesticide applied by aircraft to any crop or land area. Applicators in this category shall comply with § 128.83 (relating to ornamental or turf application) when making ornamental or turf applications.