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Materials and methods
Assessment of protective equipment
The Working Group examined materials of potential use for protective garments,
using criteria such as protection against pesticides, durability, heatexchange
properties, comfort, availability, and cost. Three materials were
identified for field evaluation: polypropylene (Kleenguard EP), polyethylene
(Tyvek S1422), and cotton. Two-piece protective garments were made from
these materials. The upper garment was a double-apron design, the lower
garment a pair of trousers.
A review of materials for protective gloves, using criteria such as protection
against a range of pesticide formulations, cost, and availability, revealed that
nitrile rubber was one of the most appropriate. Gauntlet-style gloves were
made from this material and used by the mixerloaders in the study.
A face shield of simple design was constructed with a transparent visor
mounted with elastic so that the transparent vertical section rested about
2.5 cm from the face. These were worn by the mixerloaders in the study.
Study site and crop
The study was conducted on five smallholder farms in the vicinity of
Patananikom, Lopbun District, Thailand, in September 1988. The cotton crop
under cultivation at the time was up to 1.5 m tall. Weather conditions, including
temperature, humidity, and wind speed, were monitored during the study.
Pesticide and application equipment
The organophosphorous insecticide, methamidophos, was used in the study.
The formulation, Tamaron 600 SL, contained methamidophos at 600 gIL;
30 mL was diluted to 17 L in each knapsack tank to give a methamidophos
concentration in the spray solution of about 1.06 gIL. The application rate was
1 LIha. The spray equipment consisted of semiautomatic knapsack sprayers
of stainless-steel construction with a capacity of 17 L.
Workforce
Twenty pesticide workers were recruited locally and divided into two groups
of 10. Each group consisted of two mixerloaders and eight spray operators.
All workers wore standard cotton T-shirts and shorts under the protective
garments.
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