Pesticides Certification Program

The Environmental Protection and Enhancement Act (EPEA) controls the sale, use, application, handling, storage, transport and disposal of pesticides in Alberta.

Anyone who wants to purchase, use or apply a pesticide described in Schedule 1 or 2 of the Pesticide Ministerial Regulation must either be a certified applicator or be supervised by a certified applicator.

This means:

• Pesticide applicator services in Alberta must register with the province.
• You must have at least one certified commercial pesticide application at your location(s).
• If you sell registered pesticides, you must have at least one certified commercial pesticide dispenser.

Specifically, pesticide applicator certification is required for anyone applying:

• Schedule 1 or 2 pesticides other than commercial agriculturalist
• Schedule 3 pesticides
• Pesticides in a rental dwelling
• Pesticides in the common indoor and outdoor areas of condominiums
• Pesticides in or on the grounds of a school, hospital, nursing home, or daycare facilities
• Pesticides on public lands
• A pesticide where the label specifies for use by certified or authorized applicators

Notes:

1.  Commercial agriculturalist means a person who is engaged in agricultural production, but doesn't include a person who
   • sells a pesticide or transfers a pesticide for sale
   • uses or applies a pesticide for hire or the reward, or
   • stores a pesticide to be sold, transferred, used or applied for reward
2. Check the different schedules of pesticides in the regulations overview.

These are the main applicator classes:

• Aerial
• Agricultural
• Aquatic vegetation
• Biting fly (mosquito)
• Forestry
• Fumigation
• Greenhouse
• Industrial
• Landscape
• Structural

There are also 5 specialized applicator classes:

• Exterior rodent control
• Interior plantscapes
• Roots in pipes
• Seed protectant
• Fish & aquatic invertebrate control

More detail on each of these classes can be found on the applicator classes and specialized applicator classes page.

There are 2 parts to the training:

1. home study courses
2. writing the exam

You purchase the home study courses from Lakeland College. The home study course is a physical book that will be mailed to you - digital copies are not available.

Exams range in length from an hour and a half to 4 hours. This depends on which applicator class you have studied.

Exams are electronic and can be taken at proctored exam centers in Vermilion, Olds, Lethbridge, Edmonton, Ft.McMurray, Medicine Hat and Grande Prairie. Paper exams are available only in Vermilion.

All exams are closed book.

If you don't renew, your service registration is automatically cancelled. You must stop all pesticide applicator activities until you have recertified your certificate(s).

You must renew each class of certificate you hold.

You have two options:

1. Rewrite the exam
2. Earn continuing education credits.

More information can be found on the Alberta Environment Pesticide Applicator Recertification Program web page.

You may check your current certification by logging into our applicator database.

Review the commercial retail vendor requirements.

Companies retailing pesticides registered as "Restricted, Industrial, Commercial or Agricultural" (Alberta Schedules 1 & 2) must hold a valid Agrichemical Warehousing Standards Association (AWSA) certificate or a Pesticide Vendor Registration issued by Alberta Environment.

All retail outlets are required to have at least one certified commercial pesticide dispenser. A certificate is issued upon successful completion of the certification exam.

Candidates must be 18 years of age to apply for the certification.

Commercial pesticide dispenser certificates are valid for up to 5 years, and then the dispenser must apply for a renewal.

If you want to train an authorized assistant and provide core lesson pesticide applicator tutorial training, you must first become a pesticide applicator trainer. This requirement is in place to:

• Ensure consistent delivery of "core" pesticide assistant and applicator training
• Provide information directly to trainers (examination statistics, examination blueprints, what areas candidates are not mastering knowledge, exam and text review schedules, etc.)
• Provide trainers with background information to help them deliver training
• Foster an ongoing working relationship between Alberta Environment and trainers to improve the training course

Authorized assistants may do the same work as a certified applicator but have to be under the ​certified applicator's direct supervision. An assistant may also apply pesticides listed in section 5(12) of the Environmental Code of Practice for Pesticides.

If you aren't applying pesticides commercially, there is a Farmer Pesticide Certificate.

This certification applies only to work on your farmland. Alberta Agriculture oversees the training program and certification.

However, if you use restricted products, you'll need to take 2 additional modules related to pest control in stored grain and exterior rodent control.