# Paraquat training, crop labels and paraquat use in California URL: https://leafwrit.com/us/paraquat-training/ Reviewed: 2026-10-29 ## Paraquat training: current course, proof and 2026 state changes Start paraquat training through [EPA's current training page](https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/paraquat-dichloride-training-certified-applicators), which links to the approved Syngenta course. The paraquat-specific course is required in addition to pesticide applicator certification. EPA requires certified applicators to complete the training before mixing, loading or applying paraquat and to repeat it every three years. California announced voluntary cancellation of all paraquat product registrations in August 2026, and Vermont enacted a restriction taking effect on November 1, 2026. Before you schedule paraquat work, check your state's product status and apply the state requirements alongside the training rule. ### The approved course The Syngenta Crop Protection course is online in English and Spanish. There is no training fee. Start from the EPA link rather than an old bookmark, so a new learner is not sent to a discontinued provider. The National Pesticide Safety Education Center discontinued its online and in-person paraquat training on April 15, 2025. ### Who needs the training Paraquat use includes mixing, loading, application, handling opened containers, cleaning equipment and handling excess mixture or contaminated materials. Noncertified people working under another applicator's supervision cannot use paraquat. ### The course and the applicator credential A user must be a certified applicator and must also take the paraquat-specific training; the training is a paraquat label requirement. A continuing-education class merely discussing paraquat does not satisfy that product-specific training requirement. ### Paraquat license: certification plus the paraquat course There is no separate paraquat license: a user must be a certified applicator and must also take the paraquat-specific training, which is a paraquat label requirement. Someone who asks for a paraquat license needs both documents. ### What the course covers The training covers paraquat's toxicity, label requirements and restrictions, and the consequences of misuse, and it reinforces that paraquat must not be transferred to or stored in improper containers. Take it yourself, and pay attention to acute toxicity, container practices, misuse prevention and what to do after accidental exposure. ### Completion certificate and record A certificate is generated automatically on successful completion, and the label requires applicators to retain certificates of training completion. The applicator receives a record of completion by email, which the applicator should retain. Save the certificate and the email somewhere you can find them before you start handling work. An applicator who loses the record can request a supplemental copy. ### Records from NPSEC training NPSEC maintains records until their three-year expiration. For assistance, email **npsec.us@gmail.com** with the subject **Paraquat Training Certificate**. ### Records from Syngenta training An applicator who took the training through Syngenta can request a supplemental copy from Bart Clewis at **bart.clewis@syngenta.com**. ### Continuing-education credit A state may also approve the course for continuing education; the state lead pesticide agency decides. Put the three-year repeat in your calendar, and ask your state agency whether the course counts for continuing-education credit. ### California pesticide applicator license and the paraquat course California requires a license or certification for many categories of professional pesticide applicators, and DPR examines, licenses or certifies the people and businesses that apply or sell pesticides. DPR publishes separate application packets, including the Qualified Applicator License and the Qualified Applicator Certificate. The paraquat course is required in addition to that credential, so a California applicator needs both. The licensing steps are in the [California pesticide applicator license guide](/us/california-pesticide-applicator-license/). ### California's 2026 phase-out California DPR announced on August 10, 2026 that all manufacturers had voluntarily cancelled their paraquat product registrations. Dealers may sell remaining stock for up to two years after each product's cancellation date, and growers who continue to use these products must act in accordance with all applicable directions and regulations. Before buying or using remaining stock, check the product's cancellation date and the label and state rules that apply to it. ### Vermont's enacted change Vermont's enacted paraquat provisions take effect on **November 1, 2026** and prohibit sale, use or application except as authorized by the Secretary under the statute. The legislation contains a defined authorization route for specified fruit-production uses and requires the authorized applicator's relevant training to have occurred no more than one year before permit issuance. That is a separate condition from EPA's general training interval. ## Paraquat agricultural uses: read the exact crop section and state status [EPA’s paraquat page](https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/paraquat-dichloride) is the ingredient-level reference for paraquat. Each product's own label sets the crops, timing and application methods allowed. Before any job, identify the exact product, the crop, the application method and the state, get that product's label, and check that it allows the crop, the timing and the method. ### Example label: Gramoxone SL 3.0 Gramoxone SL 3.0, registration **100-1652**, booklet **SCP 1652A-L1E 0822**, is a restricted use pesticide due to acute toxicity, and its booklet organizes crop directions under section 8.0. Match the container you actually have to this label before you use its sections to plan a job. ### Weed control and harvest aid Paraquat is an herbicide that is also used for desiccation of crops, like cotton, prior to harvest. On the label, find the directions for your crop and your kind of work: preplant, directed or harvest aid. ### Prohibited settings and equipment Do not use Gramoxone SL 3.0 in residential or public recreational settings, including homes, gardens, schools, parks, golf courses and playgrounds. Do not apply it through irrigation systems, mechanically pressurized handguns or backpack sprayers. For a manually pressurized handwand, closed transfer from the original container is required. Keep to the label's application-rate and spray-volume limits for your method. In dry areas, dust stirred up by high winds or equipment can coat weed or plant leaves and reduce activity, so the label says to avoid applying in extremely dusty conditions. For directed applications, keep spray off the crop, and check the equipment for leaks or drips that could put concentrate or mixture on foliage you want to protect. ### Protective equipment Mixers and loaders need a long-sleeve shirt, long pants, shoes, socks, waterproof gloves, a chemical-resistant apron, face shield and the specified respirator. When mixed with oil, use the listed chemical-resistant glove materials and thicknesses. Closed-system mixing and loading do not permit reductions in required handler PPE. When applying to more than **80 acres in a 24-hour period**, applications must be made using an enclosed cab. Applicators and other handlers have their own protection instructions on the label, so read the respirator requirements for the tasks you do and for applications without an enclosed cab. Discard clothing or absorbent materials drenched or heavily contaminated with concentrate. If pesticide gets into your clothing, take it off at once, wash thoroughly and put on clean clothes. ### Container and equipment materials Gramoxone SL 3.0 is corrosive to aluminum, and aluminum and all other spray equipment must be washed to remove product residues after use. The product is compatible with high density polyethylene and rubber lined steel containers. Before you connect a transfer system or fill a tank, check that nothing in it is aluminum. ### After contact Seek medical assistance immediately after contact with paraquat. Ingestion can be fatal, and skin or eye contact can have serious lasting effects. Keep the product label at the work site and tell responders which product it was. Get help first; do not wait for an incident form or a call to an adviser. ### Storage, packaging and poisoning cases Store Gramoxone SL 3.0 tightly closed in its original container, in a locked area. Never transfer it into food or beverage containers or containers not intended for pesticides. Read these label instructions before you plan any transfer, and do not pour it into a convenient vessel. Illegal transfer into beverage containers has led people to mistake paraquat for a drink and swallow it, causing approximately 1-2 deaths per year. EPA recorded three deaths and many severe injuries from paraquat getting onto the skin or into the eyes of people working with the herbicide. No paraquat fatality reports have reached EPA since the 2016 mitigation measures took effect. Gramoxone SL 3.0 contains an alerting agent (odor), an emetic and a dye. ### Drift and volatilization Paraquat's registration review includes drift risk and uncertainty about volatilization. A November 2025 memorandum addressed new vapor-pressure information and further data collection. Read the drift directions on your label separately from this vapor question. ## Where to start The approved course is linked from [EPA's paraquat training page](https://www.epa.gov/pesticide-worker-safety/paraquat-dichloride-training-certified-applicators). Product-specific limits are in the [product label](/us/read-pesticide-label/). Keep your completion certificate, and before you assign anyone to paraquat handling, check that person's qualifications against the label for your container and your state's status.