Title: Vocabulary Catalog List Detail Report

Vocabulary Catalog List Detail Report

Term | Definitions | Acronym
Accession Number | An identification number that used to be assigned (for cataloging purposes) to volumes of studies submitted to OPP. This has been replaced by the Master Record Identification (MRID) system, which identifies each individual study. See also, Master Record Identification System. |
Active Ingredient | The chemical or substance component of a pesticide product that can kill, repel, attract, mitigate or control a pest or that acts as a plant growth regulator, desiccant, or nitrogen stabilizer. The remainder of a formulated pesticide product consists of one or more "inert ingredients" (such as water, solvents, emulsifiers, surfactants, clay and propellants), which are there for reasons other than pesticidal activity. | A.I.
Acute Effect | An adverse effect on any living organism in which severe symptoms develop rapidly and often subside after the exposure stops. |

Acute Toxicity

Definition 1: Adverse effects that result from a single dose or single exposure of a chemical; any poisonous effect produced within a short period of time, usually less than 96 hours. This term normally is used to describe effects in experimental animals. 
Definition 2: The poisoning that occurs after a single exposure (effects shortly after exposure).

Aggregate Exposure | The sum total of all exposure to pesticides through inhalation, or dermal, oral, or optic contact. |
Agricultural Market | |
Agricultural User Sector | Pesticides applied by owner/operators and custom/commercial applicators to farms and facilities involved in production of raw agricultural commodities, principally food, fiber, and tobacco; includes non-crop and post-harvest use as well as crop/field applications. |
Algicide | A pesticide that controls algae in swimming pools and water tanks. |
Ambient | Any unconfined portion of the atmosphere; open air; outside surrounding air. |
Anti-Microbial Pesticide | Any chemical substance which can be used to kill microorganisms. |
Aquifer | A water-bearing layer of rock (including gravel and sand) that will yield water in usable quantity to a well or spring. |
Arthropods | Animals that don't have a backbone or spinal cord. Examples are insects with hard shells and spiders. |
Attractants | Attractants are traps containing a pesticide and food to lure insects or rodents inside. However, food is not a pesticide even though it certainly attracts pests...like ants at a picnic. |
Bactericide | A pesticide used to control or destroy bacteria, typically in the home, schools, or on hospital equipment. |
Benchmark Dose 10 | Benchmark Dose associated with a 10% response adjusted for background. | BMD10
Benchmark Response | A designated level or percent of response relative to the control level of response used in calculating a BMD. | BMR
Best Management Practices | Procedures or controls other than effluent limitations to prevent or reduce pollution of surface water (includes runoff control, spill prevention, and operating procedures). | BMP
Bioaccumulation | A process where chemicals are retained in fatty body tissue and increase in concentration over time. |
Bioassay | A method of testing a material's effects on living organisms. |
Biochemicals | Chemicals that are either naturally occurring or identical to naturally occurring substances. Examples include hormones, pheromones, and enzymes. Biochemicals function as pesticides through non-toxic, non-lethal modes of action, such as disrupting the mating pattern of insects, regulating growth, or acting as repellants. Biochemicals tend to be environmentally compatible and are thus important to Integrated Pest Management programs. |

Biological Pesticide

Definition 1: A chemical which is derived from plants, fungi, bacteria, or other non-man-made synthesis and which can be used for pest control. 
Definition 2: Certain microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, viruses, and protozoa that are effective in controlling target pests. These agents usually do not have toxic effects on animals and people and do not leave toxic or persistent chemical residues in the environment.

Biomagnification | Biomagnification is the increase of tissue accumulation in species higher in the natural food chain as contaminated food species are eaten. |
Blights | Diseases that hurt and sometimes destroy plants. Blights will cause a plant to wither, stop growing, or cause all or parts of it to die. |
Carcinogen | A substance or agent capable of causing cancer. A suspected carcinogen is a substance that may cause cancer in humans or animals but for which the evidence is not conclusive. |
Carcinogenic | Capable of causing cancer. |
Certified Applicator | |

Certified Pesticide Applicator

Definition 1: Any individual who is certified under Section 4 of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) as authorized to use or supervise the use of any pesticide which is classified for restricted use. Any applicator who applies registered pesticides, only to provide a service of controlling pests without delivering any additional pesticide supplies, is not deemed to be a seller or distributor of pesticides under FIFRA. 
Definition 2: A person who is authorized to apply "restricted-use" pesticides as result of meeting requirements for certification under FIFRA-mandated programs. Applicator certification programs are conducted by states, territories and tribes in accordance with national standards set by EPA. "Restricted use pesticides" may be used only by or under the direct supervision of specially trained and certified applicators.

Chlorination | Adding chlorine to water or wastewater, generally for the purpose of disinfection, but frequently for accomplishing other biological or chemical results. Chlorine also is used almost universally in manufacturing processes, particularly for the plastics industry. |
Chlorofluorocarbons | A family of chemicals commonly used in air conditioners and refrigerators as coolants and also as solvents and aerosol propellants. CFCs drift into the upper atmosphere where their chlorine components destroy ozone. CFCs are thought to be a major cause of the ozone hole over Antarctica. | CFCs
Chronic Effect | An adverse effect on any living organism in which symptoms develop slowly over a long period of time or recur frequently. |
Chronic Toxicity | The effects of long term or repeated low level exposures to a toxic substance (cancer, liver damage, reproductive disorders, etc.). |
Cleared Reviews | OPP Science Reviews may contain information that registrants may claim as confidential, many times they must be cleared of this information before they can be released. Once they are cleared, we keep them on file in case they are requested again. We maintain a collection of 25,260 cleared science reviews collected from the different branches within OPP. |
Commercial Applicator | A person applying pesticides as part of a business applying pesticides for hire or a person applying pesticides as part of his or her job with another (not for hire) type of business, organization or agency. Commercial applicators often are certified, but need to be so only if they use restricted-use pesticides. |
Commercial Pesticide Applicator | |
Common Mechanism Of Toxicity | Two or more chemicals or other substances that cause a common toxic effect(s) by the same, or essentially the same, sequence of major biochemical events (i.e., interpreted as mode of action). |
Comparative Effect Level | Dose by which potency of chemicals may be compared; e.g. the dose causing a maximum of 15% cholinesterase inhibition. | CEL
Concentration | The relative amount of a substance mixed with another substance. An example is five parts per million of carbon monoxide in air or 1 milligram/liter of iron in water. |
Confidential Business Information | Information that contains trade secrets, commercial or financial information, or other information that has been claimed as confidential by the submitter. | CBI
Confidential Statement of Formula | A list showing the identity of the ingredients (both active and inert) contained in a pesticide formulation. | CSF
Consent Decree | A legal document submitted by the Department of Justice on behalf of the EPA for approval by a federal judge to settle a case. A consent decree can be used to formalize an agreement reached between EPA and potentially responsible parties (PRPs) for cleanup at a Superfund site. Consent decrees also are signed by regulated facilities to cease or correct certain actions or processes that are polluting the environment and include payment of penalties. The Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Toxic Substances Control Act, and others all use consent decrees. |

Conventional Pesticides

Definition 1: Pesticides that are chemicals or other substances developed and produced primarily or only for use as pesticides. The term is generally used in reference to active ingredients. An example is DDT, which was developed and used almost exclusively as a pesticide. 
Definition 2: Unlike a biological pesticide, any man-made chemical, which can be used to kill pests.

Cradle-to-Grave | A procedure in which hazardous wastes are identified as they are produced and are followed through further treatment, transportation, and disposal by a series of permanent, linkable, descriptive documents. |
Criteria | Descriptive factors taken into account by EPA in setting standards for pollutants. For example, water quality criteria describe the concentration of pollutants that most fish can be exposed to for an hour without showing acute effects. |
Cumulative Assessment Group | A subset of chemicals selected from a common mechanism group for inclusion in a refined quantitative estimate of risk. | CAG
Cumulative Risk | The risk of a common toxic effect associated with concurrent exposure by all relevant pathways and routes of exposure to a group of chemicals that share a common mechanism of toxicity. |
Data Evaluation Record | OPP's evaluation of data supporting registration of a pesticide. See also Science review, Cleared review. | DERs
Dechlorination | Removal of chlorine and chemical replacement with hydrogen or hydroxide ions to detoxify a substance. |
Disinfectant | A chemical that destroys vegetative forms of harmful microorganisms, but does not ordinarily kill bacterial spores. |
Distributor, Distributor Product | A registrant may distribute or sell a registered product under a distributor's name. On the label of a distributor product, the EPA Registration Number will be followed by a dash and the distributor's company number (e.g. 1253-79-500). |
Domestic Waste | |
Dose | In terms of monitoring exposure levels, the amount of a toxic substance taken into the body over a given period of time. |
Dose Additivity | The Agency's assumption when evaluating the joint risk of chemicals that are toxicologically similar and act at the same target site. In other words, it is assumed that each chemical behaves as a concentration or dilution of every other chemical in the CAG or chemical mixture). The response of the combination is the response expected from the equivalent dose of an index chemical. The equivalent dose is the sum of the component doses, scaled by each chemical's toxic potency relative to the index chemical. |
Dose Response | How an organism's response to a toxic substance changes as its overall exposure to the substance changes. For example, a small dose of carbon monoxide may cause drowsiness; a large dose can be fatal. |
Ecology | The study of the relationships between all living organisms and the environment, especially the totality or pattern of interactions; a view that includes all plant and animal species and their unique contributions to a particular habitat. |
Economic Markets | |
Economic User Sectors | Estimates of quantities used and user expenditures for pesticides are broken out separately for the three general economic user sectors (or markets) as follows: agriculture, industrial/commercial/governmental, and home/garden. |
Ecosystem | The interacting synergism of all living organisms in a particular environment; every plant, insect, aquatic animal, bird, or land species that forms a complex web of interdependency. An action taken at any level in the food chain, use of a pesticide for example, has a potential domino effect on every other occupant of that system. |
Effluent | Wastewater discharged from a point source, such as a pipe. |
Effluent Guidelines | Technical documents developed by EPA which set discharge limits for particular types of industries and specific pollutants. |
Effluent Limitations | Limits on the amounts of pollutants which may be discharged by a facility; these limits are calculated so that water quality standards will not be violated even at low stream flows. |
Emission | The release or discharge of a substance into the environment. Generally refers to the release of gases or particulates into the air. |
Endangered Species | Animals, plants, birds, fish, or other living organisms threatened with extinction by man-made or natural changes in the environment. |
Environmental Audit | An independent assessment (not conducted by EPA) of a facility's compliance policies, practices, and controls. Many pollution prevention initiatives require an audit to determine where wastes may be reduced or eliminated or energy conserved. Many supplemental environmental projects that offset a penalty use audits to identify ways to reduce the harmful effects of a violation. |
Environmental Equity | Equal protection from environmental hazards for individuals, groups, or communities regardless of race, ethnicity, or economic status. |
Environmental Justice | The fair treatment of people of all races, cultures, incomes, and educational levels with respect to the development and enforcement of environmental laws, regulations, and policies. Fair treatment implies that no population should be forced to shoulder a disproportionate share of exposure to the negative effects of pollution due to lack of political or economic strength. |
Environmental Response Team | EPA's group of highly trained scientists and engineers based in Edison, NJ and Cincinnati, OH who back up the federal On-Scene Coordinator. The ERT's capabilities include multimedia sampling and analysis, hazard assessment, hazardous substance and oil spill cleanup techniques, and technical support. | ERT
EPA Registration Number | A two-part number assigned by EPA to identify each pesticide product registration (e.g., 1253-79). The first number is company number, the second number (after the dash) is the product number. This registration number must appear on the product's label. | EPA Reg. No
Epidemiologist | A medical scientist who studies the various factors involved in the incidence, distribution, and control of disease in a population. |
Erosion | The wearing away of soil by wind or water, intensified by land-clearing practices related to farming, residential or industrial development, road building, or logging. |
Estuary | A complex ecosystem between a river and near-shore ocean waters where fresh and salt water mix. These brackish areas include bays, mouths of rivers, salt marshes, wetlands, and lagoons and are influenced by tides and currents. Estuaries provide valuable habitat for marine animals, birds, and other wildlife. |
Explosive Limits (Chemical) | The amounts of vapor in air that form explosive mixtures. These limits are expressed as lower and upper values and give the range of vapor concentrations in air that will explode if an ignition source is present. |
Exposure | Radiation or pollutants that come into contact with the body and present a potential health threat. The most common routes of exposure are through the skin, mouth, or by inhalation. |
Fecal Coliform Bacteria | Found in the intestinal tracts of mammals, this bacteria in water or sludge is an indicator of pollution and possible contamination by pathogens. |
Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act | Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act is the law which controls pesticide residues in food and feed, along with FIFRA. | FFDCA
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act | The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act was enacted in June 25, 1947. The Act instructs the EPA to regulate: 1) the registration of all pesticides used in the United States, 2) the licensing of pesticide applicators, 3) re-registration of all pesticide products, 4) the storage, transportation, disposal and recall of all pesticide products. FIFRA's home page (http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/7/ch6.html) provides many more details. | FIFRA
Feedstock | Raw material supplied to a machine or processing plant from which other products can be made. For example, polyvinyl chloride and polyethylene are raw chemicals used to produce plastic tiles, mats, fenders, cushions, and traffic cones. |
Flammable | Describes any material that can be ignited easily and that will burn rapidly. |
Flash Point | The lowest temperature at which evaporation of a substance produces enough vapor to form an ignitable mixture with air. |
Floodplain | Mostly level land along rivers and streams that may be submerged by floodwater. A 100-year floodplain is an area which can be expected to flood once in every 100 years. |
The Food Quality Protection Act | The Food Quality Protection Act was enacted on Aug. 3, 1996 to ensure the safety of food in the United States. The FQPA home page (http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/regulating/laws/fqpa/) will provide more detailed information. | FQPA
Fugitive Emissions | Air pollutants released to the air other than those from stacks or vents; typically small releases from leaks in plant equipment such as valves, pump seals, flanges, sampling connections, etc. |
Fumigants | A pesticide used to control or destroy fungi on food or grain crops. |

Fungicide

Definition 1: A pesticide used to control fungi. 
Definition 2: A pesticide used to control or destroy fungi on food or grain crops.

Fungus | Funguses, or fungi, are types of plants that have no leaves, flowers or roots. Both words, funguses and fungi, are the plural of fungus. |
Garbage | Food waste (animal and vegetable) resulting from the handling, storage, packaging, sale, preparation, cooking, and serving of foods. |
Generator | A facility or mobile source that emits pollutants into the air; any person who produces a hazardous waste that is listed by EPA and therefore subject to regulation. |
Grab Sample | A single sample of soil or of water taken without regard to time or flow. |
Ground Water | Water found below the surface of the land, usually in porous rock formations. Ground water is the source of water found in wells and springs and is used frequently for drinking. |
Hazard Communication Standard | An OSHA regulation that requires chemical manufacturers, suppliers, and importers to assess the hazards of the chemicals they make, supply, or import, and to inform employers, customers, and workers of these hazards through a Material Safety Data Sheet. |
Hazardous Chemical | EPA's designation for any hazardous material that requires a Material Safety Data Sheet. Such substances are capable of producing adverse physical effects (fire, explosion, etc.) or adverse health effects (cancer, dermatitis, etc.). |
Hazardous Waste | A subset of solid wastes that pose substantial or potential threats to public health or the environment and meet any of the following criteria: (1) is specifically listed as a hazardous waste by EPA; (2) exhibits one or more of the characteristics of hazardous wastes (ignitability, corrosiveness, reactivity, and/or toxicity); (3) is generated by the treatment of hazardous waste; or is contained in a hazardous waste. |
Hazardous Waste Landfill | A specially permitted, excavated or engineered area in which hazardous waste is deposited and covered. Proper protection of the environment from the materials to be deposited in such a landfill requires careful site selection, the cataloging of types of wastes, good design (including a liner and a leachate collection and treatment system), proper operation, and thorough final closure. |
Health Assessment | An evaluation of available data on existing or potential risks posed by a Superfund site. Every site on the National Priorities List has a health assessment prepared by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. |
Heavy Metal | A common hazardous waste; can damage organisms at low concentrations and tends to accumulate in the food chain. |
Herbicide | A pesticide designed to control or kill plants, weeds, or grasses. Almost 70% of all pesticide used by farmers and ranchers are herbicides. These chemicals have wide-ranging effects on non-target species. |
Home and Garden Market | |
Home and Garden User Sector | Involves pesticides applied by homeowners to homes and gardens, including lawns; single and multiple unit housing. Does not include pesticides for home/garden applications by professional applicators. |
Household Waste | Solid waste, composed of garbage and rubbish, which normally originates from residential, private households, or apartment buildings. Domestic waste may contain a significant amount of toxic or hazardous waste from improperly discarded pesticides, paints, batteries, and cleaners. |
Hydraulic Gradient | The direction of ground water flow due to changes in the depth of the water table. |
Hydrocarbons | Chemicals that consist entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons contribute to air pollution problems like smog. |
Impoundment | A body of water or sludge confined by a dam, dike, floodgate, or other barrier. |
Incidental Take | The number of animals that are harmed or killed as a result of pesticide application. |
Incineration | The destruction of solid, liquid, or gaseous wastes by controlled burning at high temperatures. Hazardous organic compounds are converted to ash, carbon dioxide, and water. Burning destroys organics, reduces the volume of waste, and vaporizes water and other liquids the wastes may contain. The residue ash produced may contain some hazardous material, such as non-combustible heavy metals, concentrated from the original waste. |
Incinerator | A furnace for the routine burning of waste materials using controlled flame combustion. |
Incompatible Waste | A waste unsuitable for mixing with another waste or material because of reactivity hazards. |
Index Chemical | A chemical used as the point of reference for standardizing the common toxicity of the chemical members of the CAG. |
Indoor Air | Breathing air inside a habitable structure, often highly polluted because of lack of exchange with fresh oxygen from outdoors. Solvents, smoke, paints, furniture glues, carpet padding, and other synthetic chemicals trapped inside contribute to an often unhealthy environment. |
Industrial/Commercial/Governmental Markets | |
Industrial/Commercial/Governmental User Sector | Involves pesticides applied by professional applicators (by owner/operators/employees and custom/commercial applicators) to industrial, commercial and governmental facilities, buildings, sites, and land; plus custom/commercial applications to homes and gardens, including lawns. May also be referred to as "professional market" for pesticides. |
Industrial Waste | Unwanted materials produced in or eliminated from an industrial operation and categorized under a variety of headings, such as liquid wastes, sludge, solid wastes, and hazardous wastes. |
Inert Ingredients | Substances that are not "active," such as water, petroleum distillates, talc, corn meal, or soaps. When discussing pesticides, inert ingredients do not attack a particular pest, but some are chemically or biologically active, causing health and environmental problems. |
Infectious Waste | See definition for Medical Waste. |
Insecticide | A pesticide compound specifically used to kill or prevent the growth of insects. |
Integrated Pest Management | The use of pest and environmental information in conjunction with available pest control technologies to prevent unacceptable levels of pest damage by the most economical means and with the least possible hazard to persons, property and the environment. | IPM
Irradiated Food | Food that has been briefly exposed to radioactivity (usually gamma rays) to kill insects, bacteria, and mold. Irradiated food can be stored without refrigeration or chemical preservatives and has a long "shelf life." |
Irritant | A substance that can cause irritation of the skin, eyes, or respiratory system. An irritant can cause an acute effect from a single high-level exposure, or chronic effects from repeated, low-level exposures. Some examples of irritants are chlorine, nitric acid, and various pesticides. |
Lagoon | A shallow, artificial treatment pond where sunlight, bacterial action, and oxygen work to purify wastewater; a stabilization pond. An aerated lagoon is a treatment pond that uses oxygen to speed up the natural process of biological decomposition of organic wastes. A lagoon is regulated as a point source under the Clean Water Act if there is a direct surface water discharge. Some lagoons that discharge into ground water also are regulated if they have a direct hydrogeologic connection to surface water. In other areas, lagoons were historically used to dump various liquid, solid, and hazardous wastes from manufacturing or industrial processes. These wastes typically flooded and polluted surrounding environs or seeped underground. Such lagoons are now regulated under RCRA but some must be cleaned up under Superfund. |
Landfill | A method for final disposal of solid waste on land. The refuse is spread and compacted and a cover of soil applied so that effects on the environment (including public health and safety) are minimized. Under current regulations, landfills are required to have liners and leachate treatment systems to prevent contamination of ground water and surface waters. An industrial landfill disposes of non-hazardous industrial wastes. A municipal landfill disposes of domestic waste including garbage, paper, etc. This waste may include toxins that are used in the home, such as insect sprays and powders, engine oil, paints, solvents, and weed killers. |
Leachate | Liquid (mainly water) that percolates through a landfill and has picked up dissolved, suspended, and/or microbial contaminants from the waste. Leachate can be compared to coffee: water that has percolated down through the ground coffee. |
Lethal Concentration 50 | A concentration of a pollutant or effluent at which 50% of the test organisms die; a common measure of acute toxicity. | LC 50
Lethal Dose 50 | The dose of a toxicant that will kill 50% of test organisms within a designated period of time. The lower the LD 50, the more toxic the compound. | LD 50
Lowest Observed Adverse Effect Level | The lowest dose in a toxicity study resulting in adverse health effects. | LOAEL
Manifest System | Tracking of hazardous waste from "cradle to grave" (generation through disposal), with accompanying documents known as "manifests." |
Master Record Identification Number | A unique cataloging number assigned to an individual pesticide study at the time of its submission to the Agency. | MRID
Material Safety Data Sheet | Printed material concerning a hazardous chemical, or Extremely Hazardous Substance, including its physical properties, hazards to personnel, fire and explosion potential, safe handling recommendations, health effects, fire fighting techniques, reactivity, and proper disposal. Originally established for employee safety by OSHA. | MSDS
Maximum Contaminant Level | The maximum level of certain contaminants permitted in drinking water supplied by a public water system as set by EPA under the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. | MCL
Maximum Contaminant Level Goal | The maximum level of a contaminant that is associated with no adverse health effects from drinking water containing that contaminant over a lifetime. For chemicals believed to cause cancer, the MCLGs are set at zero. MCLGs are not enforceable, but are ideal, health-based goals which are set in the National Primary Drinking Water Standards developed by EPA. MCLs are set as close to MCLGs as possible, considering costs and technology. | MCLG
Mechanisms of Toxicity | The biochemical method by which a chemical reacts in a living organism. |
Medical Waste | All wastes from hospitals, clinics, or other health care facilities ("Red Bag Waste") that contain or have come into contact with diseased tissues or infectious microorganisms. Also referred to as infectious waste which is hazardous waste with infectious characteristics, including; contaminated animal waste, human blood and blood products, pathological waste, and discarded sharps (needles, scalpels, or broken medical instruments). |
Microbial Pesticides | Microorganisms that kill or inhibit pests, including insects or other microorganisms. Sometimes microorganisms get rid of pests simply by growing larger in numbers, using up the pests' food supply, and invading the pests' environment. |
Microorganisms | Bacteria, yeasts, simple fungi, algae, protozoans, and a number of other organisms that are microscopic in size. Most are beneficial but some produce disease. Others are involved in composting and sewage treatment. |
Mildews | Thin coatings of powdery fungi that can grow on damp surfaces like bathroom tiles and corners of the bathtub. |
Milligrams/Liter | A measure of concentration used in the measurement of fluids. Mg/l is the most common way to present a concentration in water and is roughly equivalent to parts per million. | MG/L
Minimization | Measures or techniques that reduce the amount of wastes generated during industrial production processes; this term also is applied to recycling and other efforts to reduce the volume of waste going to landfills. This term is interchangeable with waste reduction and waste minimization. |
Mites | Tiny eight-legged animals that live off plants, animals or stored food. |
Miticides | Kill mites that feed on plants and animals. |
Mitigation | Measures taken to reduce adverse effects on the environment. |
Molds | Furry fungi that grow on damp surfaces. |
Molluscicides | Kill snails and slugs. |
Monitoring Well | A well used to take water quality samples or to measure ground water levels. |
Morbidity | Rate of incidence of disease. |
Mortality | Death rate. |
Mutagenicity | The property of a chemical that causes the genetic characteristics of an organism to change in such a way that future generations are permanently affected. |
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System | The primary permitting program under the Clean Water Act which regulates all discharges to surface water. | NPDES
National Response Center | The primary communications center operated by the U.S. Coast Guard to receive reports of major chemical and oil spills and other hazardous substances into the environment. The NRC immediately relays reports to a predesignated federal On-Scene Coordinator. | NRC
Nematicides | Kill nematodes (microscopic, worm-like organisms that feed on plant roots). |
Neutralization | The chemical process in which the acidic or basic characteristics of a fluid are changed to those of water (pH = 7). |

No Observed Adverse Effect Level

Definition 1: A level of exposure which does not cause observable harm. 
Definition 2: The highest dose in a toxicity study which does not result in adverse health effects.

NOAEL

No Observed Effect Level | |
NOEL | |
Non-Agricultural Sectors | General term which refers to a combination of home/garden and industrial/commercial/governmental sectors. |
Non-Target Organism | Any organism for which the pesticide was not intended to control. |
Nonpoint Source | Any source of pollution not associated with a distinct discharge point. Includes sources such as rainwater, runoff from agricultural lands, industrial sites, parking lots, and timber operations, as well as escaping gases from pipes and fittings. |
Odor Threshold | The lowest concentration of a substance in air that can be smelled. Odor thresholds are highly variable because of the differing ability of individuals to detect odors. |
Office of General Council | This EPA Office provides legal advice and service to all organizational elements of EPA, including the Office of Pesticide Programs. | OGC
Office of Pesticide Programs | This EPA Office registers and regulates pesticides. | OPP
On-Scene Coordinator | The federal official responsible for the coordination of a hazardous materials response action, as specified in individual Regional Contingency Plans. OSCs are predesignated by EPA for inland areas and by the U.S. Coast Guard for coastal areas. The OSC coordinates all federal containment, removal, and disposal efforts and resources during a pollution incident. The OSC is the point of contact for the coordination of federal efforts with those of the local response community. The OSC has access to extensive federal resources, including the National Strike Force, the Environmental Response Team, and Scientific Support Coordinators. The OSC can be a source of valuable support and information to the community. | OSC
OPCumRisk | A computer program developed at ORD's NHEERL to determine relative potency estimates and PoDs for the index chemical. |
Organically Grown | Food, feed crops, and livestock grown within an intentionally-diversified, self-sustaining agro-ecosystem. In practice, farmers build up nutrients in the soil using compost, agricultural wastes, and cover crops instead of synthetically derived fertilizers to increase productivity, rotate crops, weed mechanically, and reduce dramatically their dependence on the entire family of pesticides. Farmers must be certified to characterize crops as organically grown and can only use approved natural and synthetic biochemicals, agents, and materials for three consecutive years prior to harvest. Livestock must be fed a diet that includes grains and forages that have been organically grown and cannot receive hormones, sub-therapeutic antibiotics, or other growth promoters. |
Organism | Any living being, whether plant, mammal, bird, insect, reptile, fish, crustacean, aquatic or estuarine animal, or bacterium. |
Other Pesticide Chemicals | Chemicals registered as pesticides but which are produced and marketed mostly for other purposes, i.e., multi-use chemicals. Notable examples are sulfur, petroleum products (e.g., kerosene, oils and distillates), salt and sulfuric acid. |
Parts Per Billion | One ppb is comparable to one kernel of corn in a filled, 45-foot silo, 16 feet in diameter. | PPB
Parts Per Million | One ppm is comparable to one drop of gasoline in a tankful of gas (full-size car). | PPM
Parts Per Trillion | One ppt is comparable to one drop in a swimming pool covering the area of a football field 43 ft. deep. | PPT
Pathogen | A bacterial organism typically found in the intestinal tracts of mammals, capable of producing disease. |
Pathway of Exposure | The physical course a pesticide takes from the source to the organism exposed (e.g., through food or drinking water consumption or residential pesticide uses). |
Permeability | The ease with which water, or other fluid, passes through a substance. |
Permissible Exposure Limit | Workplace exposure limits for contaminants established by OSHA. | PEL
Permit | A legal document issued by state and/or federal authorities containing a detailed description of the proposed activity and operating procedures as well as appropriate requirements and regulations. The permitting process includes provisions for public comment. |
Pesticide | Substances intended to repel, kill, or control any species designated a "pest" including weeds, insects, rodents, fungi, bacteria, or other organisms. The family of pesticides includes herbicides, insecticides, rodenticides, fungicides, and bactericides. |
Pesticide Chemical Code | A six-digit number assigned by OPP to identify pesticide chemicals. Also called a Shaughnessy code. The PC Code is often used for searching computer databases because it is short and easy to enter. | PC Code
Pesticide Document Management System | The EPA-maintained collection of documents of regulatory significance to pesticides, including submitted studies. | PDMS
Pesticide Document Management System Bibliography | A list of citations of selected PDMS documents and/or studies, usually for a single pesticide active ingredient, sorted by MRID number or guideline number. | PDMS Bibliography
Pesticide Residue | A film of pesticide left on the plant, soil, container, equipment, handler, etc. after application of the pesticide. |
Pesticide Usage | Refers to actual applications of pesticides, generally in terms of quantity applied or units treated. |
Pesticide User Expenditures | Dollar value of purchases by persons or businesses applying pesticides, such as farmers, commercial pesticide applicators and homeowners. Reported numbers are nominal values for the years indicated, i.e., not adjusted or indexed for inflation. |
pH | The measure of acidity or alkalinity of a chemical solution, from 0-14. Anything neutral, for example, has a pH of 7. Acids have a pH less than 7, bases (alkaline) greater than 7. |
Pheromones | Biochemicals used to disrupt the mating behavior of insects |
Point of Departure | A dose that can be considered to be in the range of observed responses, without significant extrapolation. A PoD can be a data point or an estimated point that is derived from observed dose-response data. A PoD is used to mark the beginning of extrapolation to determine risk associated with lower environmentally relevant human exposures. | PoD
Point Source | A stationary location or fixed facility such as an industry or municipality that discharges pollutants into air or surface water through pipes, ditches, lagoons, wells, or stacks; a single identifiable source such as a ship or a mine. |
Pollution | Any substances in water, soil, or air that degrade the natural quality of the environment, offend the senses of sight, taste, or smell, or cause a health hazard. The usefulness of the natural resource is usually impaired by the presence of pollutants and contaminants. |
Pollution Prevention | Actively identifying equipment, processes, and activities which generate excessive wastes or use toxic chemicals and then making substitutions, alterations, or product improvements. Conserving energy and minimizing wastes are pollution prevention concepts used in manufacturing, sustainable agriculture, recycling, and clean air/clean water technologies. |
Potable Water | Raw or treated water that is considered safe to drink. |
Private Applicator | A category of applicator certification for farmers and/or employees such that they can legally apply restricted use pesticides or supervise others doing so who are not certified. |
Private Pesticide Applicator | |
Professional Market | Sales of pesticides for application to industrial/commercial/governmental sectors, homes and gardens by certified/commercial applicators. |
Public Comment Period | The time allowed for the members of an affected community to express views and concerns regarding an action proposed to be taken by EPA, such as a rulemaking, permit, or Superfund remedy selection. |
Public Water System | Any water system that regularly supplies piped water to the public for consumption, serving at least an average of 25 individuals per day for at least 60 days per year, or has at least 15 service connections. |
Publicly Owned Treatment Works | A municipal or public service district sewage treatment system. | POTW
Quality Assurance/Quality Control | A system of procedures, checks, audits, and corrective actions to ensure that all technical, operational, monitoring, and reporting activities are of the highest achievable quality. |
Raw Water | Intake water prior to any treatment or use |
Receiving Waters | A river, lake, ocean, stream, or other body of water into which wastewater or treated effluent is discharged. |
Recharge Area | An area of land where there is a net annual transfer of water from the surface to ground water; where rainwater soaks through the earth to reach an aquifer. |
Recycling | Reusing materials and objects in original or changed forms rather than discarding them as wastes. |
Reduced-Risk Pesticides | These are pesticides which: (1) reduce pesticide risks to human health; (2) reduce pesticide risks to non­target organisms; (3) reduce the potential for contamination of valued, environmental resources, or (4) broaden adoption of IPM or makes it more effective. More detailed information can be found on the headquarters´ reduced-risk pesticides program home page (http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/regulating/laws/fqpa/). |
Reference Dose | The particular concentration of a chemical that is known to cause health problems. A standard that also may be referred to as the acceptable daily intake. | RfD
Reference Files System | An OPP database that provides data on pesticide active ingredients, registrants, and products (including product types, formulations, transfers, etc.). | REFS
Registrant | A pesticide manufacturer that has registered a pesticide product. |
Registration | Formal listing with EPA of a new pesticide before sale or distribution. EPA is responsible for pre-market licensing of pesticides on the basis of data demonstrating no unreasonable adverse health or environmental effects when applied according to approved label directions. |
Registration Jacket | Also Registration File. A file of documents supporting registration for each pesticide product. These files contain product labels, OPP and registrant correspondence, OPP science reviews and other information. |
Relative Potency Factor | The ratio of the toxic potency of a given chemical to that of an index chemical in the CAG. Relative potency factors are used to convert exposures of all chemicals in the CAG into their exposure equivalents of the index chemical. | RPF
Release | Any spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying, discharging, injecting, escaping, leaching, dumping, or disposing into the environment of a hazardous or toxic chemical, or extremely hazardous substance. |
Remedial Action | The actual construction or clean-up phase of a Superfund site cleanup. |
Repellant | Any chemical which can be used to drive away insects, bears, dogs, or other pests. |
Request Identification Number | A number assigned by EPA to identify your Freedom of Information Act request (e.g., 1234-99). Refer to the RIN when contacting EPA concerning your request. | RIN
Residue Studies | Research which examines the recalcitrance, bioavailability, toxicity, solubility, etc. of pesticide residues. More information on this topic can be found at the FDA site for residual pesticides monitoring. |
Restricted-Use Pesticides | A pesticide that can be sold to or used by only certified applicators. |
Risk | A measure of the chance that damage to life, health, property, or the environment will occur. |
Risk Assessment | A methodology used to examine all possible risks involved with a particular product or organism. Risk assessment can be divided into four parts: identification of hazards, dose response (how much exposure causes particular problems (i.e., cancer, convulsions, death), exposure assessment (determining how much exposure will be received by people during particular activities), and risk characterization (determining a probability that a risk will occur). |
Risk Communication | The process of exchanging information about levels or significance of health or environmental risk. |
Risk Factor | A characteristic (e.g., race, sex, age, obesity) or variable (e.g., smoking, exposure) associated with increased chance of toxic effects. Some standard risk factors used in general risk assessment calculations include average breathing rates, average weight, and average human life span. |
Rodenticide | A pesticide or other agent used to kill rats and other rodents or to prevent them from damaging food, crops, or forage. |
Route of Exposure | The way a chemical enters an organism after contact (e.g., ingestion, inhalation, or dermal absorption). |
Rusts | Red or brown disease spots on plants caused by fungi. |
Safer Pesticides | Pesticides designated as "safer" (or "reduced-risk") by EPA due to favorable characteristics affecting health or environmental risks, resistance management and integrated pest management. Safer pesticides may be conventional pesticides posing less risk or be biopesticides with unique modes of action, low use volume, lower toxicity, target species specificity or natural occurrence. |
Science Reviews | OPP reviews various pesticide studies, such as toxicology, environmental fate and groundwater, ecological effects, and product chemistry. See Cleared Reviews, DERs. |
Sediment | Topsoil, sand, and minerals washed from the land into water, usually after rain or snow melt. Sediments collecting in rivers, reservoirs, and harbors can destroy fish and wildlife habitat and cloud the water so that sunlight cannot reach aquatic plants. Loss of topsoil from farming, mining, or building activities can be prevented through a variety of erosion-control techniques. |
Sewer | A channel or conduit that carries wastewater and stormwater to a treatment plant or receiving waters. "Sanitary" sewers carry household, industrial, and commercial waste. "Storm" sewers carry runoff from rain or snow. |
Shaughnessy Code | |
Slurry | A pumpable mixture of solids and fluid. |
Solid Waste | As defined under RCRA, any solid, semi-solid, liquid, or contained gaseous materials discarded from industrial, commercial, mining, or agricultural operations, and from community activities. Solid waste includes garbage, construction debris, commercial refuse, sludge from water supply or waste treatment plants, or air pollution control facilities, and other discarded materials. |
Source Reduction | The design, manufacture, purchase, or use of materials (such as products and packaging) to reduce the amount or toxicity of garbage generated. Source reduction can help reduce waste disposal and handling charges because the costs of recycling, municipal composting, landfilling, and combustion are avoided. Source reduction conserves resources and reduces pollution. |
Specialty Biocides | In this report, estimates are provided for end uses as follows: swimming pools, spas and industrial water treatment (excludes chlorine/hypochlorites which are reported separately); disinfectants and sanitizers (including industrial/institutional applications and household cleaning products); and other specialty biocides (including biocides for adhesives and sealants, leather, synthetic latex polymers, metal working fluids, paints and coatings, petroleum products, plastics and textiles). These are categories of end usage which are covered by FIFRA. There are other end uses of specialty biocides which are regulated under FFDCA and are not covered in this report. (such as hospital/medical antiseptics, food/feed preservatives and for cosmetics/toiletries). |
Standard Industrial Classification Code | A method of grouping industries with similar products or services and assigning codes to these groups. | SIC Code
Steady State Inhibition | The time point at which continued dosing at the same level results in no further increase in cholinesterase inhibition. |
Surface Water | All water naturally open to the atmosphere (rivers, lakes, reservoirs, ponds, streams, seas, estuaries) and all springs, wells, or other collectors directly influenced by surface water. |
Surfactant | A detergent compound that promotes lathering. |
Sustainable Agriculture | Environmentally friendly methods of farming that allow the production of crops or livestock without damage to the farm as an ecosystem, including effects on soil, water supplies, biodiversity, or other surrounding natural resources. The concept of sustainable agriculture is an "intergenerational" one in which we pass on a conserved or improved natural resource base instead of one which has been depleted or polluted. Terms often associated with farms or ranches that are self-sustaining include "low-input," organic, "ecological," "biodynamic," and "permaculture." |
Synergism | The cooperative action of two or more organisms producing a greater total result than the sum of their independent effects; chemicals or muscles in synergy enhance the effectiveness of one another beyond what an individual could have produced. |
Ten-to-The-Minus-Sixth | Used in risk assessments to refer to the probability of risk. Literally means a chance of one in a million. Similarly, ten-to-the-minus-fifth means a probability of one in 100,000, and so on. | 10 to -6
Teratogen | A substance capable of causing birth defects. |
Threshold Limit Value | The concentration of an airborne substance that a healthy person can be exposed to for a 40-hour work week without adverse effect; a workplace exposure standard. | TLV

Tolerance

Definition 1: Permissible residue level for pesticides in raw agricultural produce and processed foods. Whenever a pesticide is registered for use on a food or feed crop, a tolerance must be established. EPA establishes the tolerance levels, which are enforced by the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Agriculture. 
Definition 2: The maximum amount of a pesticide allowable in a food or feed product before it is considered adulterated, usually specified in parts per million. 
Definition 3: The ability of a living thing to withstand adverse conditions, such as pest attacks, weather extremes, or pesticides. 
Definition 4: The amount of pesticide that may safely remain in or on raw farm products at time of sale.

Total Dissolved Solids | The quantity of dissolved material in a given volume of water. | TDS
Tox One-Liner | An OPP summary of toxicology reviews for a particular active ingredient. For each entry, the One-liner lists a citation, MRID Numbers or Accession Numbers, brief study results, and document numbers identifying the OPP tox reviews. Other information is also listed. |
Toxic Chemical | Substances that can cause severe illness, poisoning, birth defects, disease, or death when ingested, inhaled, or absorbed by living organisms. |
Toxic Release Inventory | A database of annual toxic releases from certain manufacturers compiled from EPCRA Section 313 reports. Manufacturers must report annually to EPA and the states the amounts of almost 350 toxic chemicals and 22 chemical categories that they release directly to air, water, or land, inject underground, or transfer to off-site facilities. EPA compiles these reports and makes the information available to the public under the "Community Right-to-Know" portion of the law. | TRI
Toxic Substance | A chemical or mixture that can cause illness, death, disease, or birth defects. The quantities and exposures necessary to cause these effects can vary widely. Many toxic substances are pollutants and contaminants in the environment. |
Toxicity | The capacity of a chemical to do harm to an organism by other than mechanical means. |
Toxicity Testing | Biological testing (usually with an invertebrate, fish, or small mammal) to determine the adverse effects, if any, of a chemical, compound, or effluent. |
Trade Secret | Any confidential formula, pattern, process, device, information, or set of data that is used in a business to give the owner a competitive advantage. Such information may be excluded from public review. |
Underground Storage Tank | A tank and any underground piping connected to the tank that has 10% or more of its volume (including pipe volume) beneath the surface of the ground. USTs are designed to hold gasoline, other petroleum products, and hazardous materials. | UST
U.S. Food and Drug Administration | which is involved in regulation of pesticides in the U.S., particularly enforcement of tolerances in food and feed products. | FDA
USDA | U.S. Department of Agriculture |
Vapor | The gas given off by substances that are solids or liquids at ordinary atmospheric pressure and temperatures. |
Vapor Dispersion | The movement of vapor clouds or plumes in the air due to wind, gravity, spreading, and mixing. |
Vent | The connection and piping through which gases enter and exit a piece of equipment. |
Volatile | Any substance which evaporates quickly. |
Volatile Organic Compounds | Any organic compound which evaporates readily to the atmosphere. VOCs contribute significantly to photochemical smog production and certain health problems. | VOC
Water Quality Standard | The combination of a designated use and the maximum concentration of a pollutant which will protect that use for any given body of water. For example, in a trout stream, the concentration of iron should not exceed 1 mg/l. | WQS
Water Table | The boundary between the saturated and unsaturated zones. Generally, the level to which water will rise in a well (except artesian wells). |
Wellhead Protection Area | A protected surface and subsurface zone surrounding a well or well field that supplies a public water system and through which contaminants could likely reach well water. |
Wetlands | Areas that are soaked or flooded by surface or ground water frequently enough or for sufficient duration to support plants, birds, animals, and aquatic life. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs, estuaries, and other inland and coastal areas, and are federally protected. Wetlands frequently serve as recharge/discharge areas and are known as "nature's kidneys" since they help purify water. Wetlands also have been referred to as natural sponges that absorb flood waters, functioning like natural tubs to collect overflow. Wetlands are important wildlife habitats, breeding grounds, and nurseries because of their biodiversity. Many endangered species as well as countless estuarine and marine fish and shellfish, mammals, waterfowl, and other migratory birds use wetland habitat for growth, reproduction, food, and shelter. Wetlands are among the most fertile, natural ecosystems in the world since they produce great volumes of food (plant material). |
Wildlife Refuge | An area designated for the protection of wild animals, within which hunting and fishing are either prohibited or strictly controlled. |
Wood Preservatives | Pesticide active ingredients used in treatment of wood to protect it from insects, fungi and other pests. In this report, a total is presented for usage of wood preservative chemicals in industrial plants, the bulk of which is for pressure treatment. The major categories of pesticide chemicals included in this report as industrial wood preservatives are water borne preservatives (primarily arsenicals), oil borne preservatives (such as copper naphthenate and pentachlorophenol), creosote, creosote-coal tar and creosote petroleum. |
Wood Treatment Facility | An industrial facility which treats lumber and other wood products for outdoor use. The process involves use of chromated copper arsenate and other toxic chemicals which are regulated as hazardous materials. |
Worker Protection Standards | |
Z-List | OSHA's Toxic and Hazardous Substances Tables (Z1, Z-2, and Z3) of air contaminants; any material found on these tables is considered hazardous. |
Zone of Saturation | The layer beneath the surface of the land in which all openings are filled with water. |