Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation

Mix or apply pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides through sprays, dusts, vapors, soil incorporation, or chemical application on trees, shrubs, lawns, or crops. Usually requires specific training and state or federal certification.

The occupation "Pesticide Handlers, Sprayers, and Applicators, Vegetation" has an automation risk of 29.7%, which is quite close to the base risk estimate of 30.0%. This risk level indicates that while there is some potential for automation, a substantial proportion of the job’s tasks remain resistant to being fully automated. The relatively moderate risk highlights that certain job aspects can be mechanized, particularly those involving repetitive or routine actions, but a significant human role persists due to the variability and demands of the work environment. The top three most automatable tasks for this occupation involve activities that are physically repetitive and follow predictable procedures: "Mix pesticides, herbicides, or fungicides for application to trees, shrubs, lawns, or botanical crops," "Fill sprayer tanks with water and chemicals, according to formulas," and "Lift, push, and swing nozzles, hoses, and tubes to direct spray over designated areas." These tasks are conducive to automation due to their formulaic nature and minimal requirement for adaptive decision-making. Machines can be programmed to handle the measuring, mixing, and application processes with precision, reducing the need for manual labor and improving consistency. However, resistance to automation is observed in tasks that demand adaptive judgment, manual dexterity, and human communication. The three most resistant tasks—"Plant grass with seed spreaders, and operate straw blowers to cover seeded areas with mixtures of asphalt and straw," "Provide driving instructions to truck drivers to ensure complete coverage of designated areas, using hand and horn signals," and "Clean or service machinery to ensure operating efficiency, using water, gasoline, lubricants, or hand tools"—require nuanced actions and situational assessments that are challenging for current automation technologies. Furthermore, bottleneck skills such as Originality, with levels at 2.4% and 2.1%, indicate that creative problem-solving is occasionally required, further limiting the feasible scope of automation. As a result, the role remains only partially automatable, with a significant need for skilled human oversight and intervention.