The legal requirement to use plant protection products only with technically efficient equipment that does not pose a risk to human health, animal health or the environment is a cross-compliance requirement that is also economically justified, as only an efficient sprayer allows the precise and legal use of plant protection products.
Tests to confirm the technical efficiency of equipment intended for the application of plant protection products shall be carried out at a Sprayer Inspection Station, at intervals of no more than 3 years, with the first test of such equipment being carried out no later than 5 years after the date of its acquisition (Journal of Laws of 2013, item 1742). According to the Law on Plant Protection Products (Journal of Laws of 2013, item 455), equipment intended for the application of plant protection products shall be used for treatment with plant protection products, which:
- when used for its intended purpose, it poses no risk to human or animal health or to the environment;
- is technically operational and calibrated to ensure correct application of plant protection products.
Compulsory testing should not be a cause for concern for farmers, as the requirements for the technical efficiency of sprayers are not exorbitant and every complete and efficient sprayer, regardless of its age, should achieve a positive result. The detailed manner in which the test of sprayers is carried out is set out in the Regulation of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of 7 March 2013 on the testing of technical efficiency of sprayers (Journal of Laws of 2013, item 416). For more information see: piorin.gov.pl/srodki-ochrony-roslin/badanie-opryskiwaczy/