Aerial Application and Seed Treatment
Aerial application
Aerial work is regulated under 14 CFR Part 137 (FAA) in addition to pesticide certification and business licensing. Aerial applicators must control droplet size, swath width, and boom/nozzle configuration to place product on target while minimizing drift: coarser droplets, lower pressure, proper release height, and accurate swath guidance. Do not spray when wind exceeds label limits or during a temperature inversion - the spray will hang and move off-site. Use flaggers or GPS swath guidance, honor buffer zones, and identify sensitive adjacent sites (apiaries, water, organic farms, dwellings) in advance.
Seed treatment
Seed treatment is a separate certification category and a distinct handling system: closed transfer, slurry or mist treaters, and treated-seed bags that must carry the label and the treated-seed statement. Treated seed is not food or feed; surplus treated seed cannot be sold into commodity channels. Planter dust - especially graphite and talc from vacuum planters - is a recognized route to pollinator kills, so follow the label's dust-reduction directions, avoid planting near blooming crops when bees are foraging, and manage seed spillage.
Traps
Treating aerial application as just a bigger ground rig; forgetting Part 137; assuming a treated-seed bag can go to the elevator; ignoring planter dust; applying at the wrong wind or inversion condition.
Rule of thumb: if you cannot clearly see where the swath lands and where the wind is taking the fines, do not release the spray or the treated seed.