A pesticide store or chemical store can be purchased from a chemical store manufacturer or alternatively, you can construct your own. The HSE UK has a guidance document on storing pesticides for farmers and other professional users, which outlines the requirements for your pesticide store. The document addresses various headings including fire protection, bunding, safety signage, and more. Some of the key areas to consider when storing pesticides or agri chemicals include:

Size

Your pesticide store will need to be big enough to store the maximum likely volume of pesticides that you could have on site. You also need to include a storage area for your empty pesticide containers.

Location

Your pesticide store cannot be located within an occupied building and it must be located at least 4 metres away from sources of ignition and combustable materials. These can include hay, straw, gases, fuels, paints, wood stacks etc. It must also be located at least 4 metres away from domestic dwellings. Do not locate your pesticide store near drains, wells, or areas liable to flooding.

Fire Resistance

Your Pesticide Store needs to be able to resist fire for a minimum of 30 minutes. Stores can be purchased with wall construction which has up to 144 minutes fire protection. Fire resistance is a necessary element of your storage area, in order to minimise potential damage in the event of a fire.

Leak Protection

Your store will also need to be bunded. This means that if any chemicals leak they will be captured in the base of the store (the bund) and retained. Therefore, it will prevent the escape of such chemicals into drains and the groundwater system causing pollution.  The bund capacity needs to be 110% of the total volume of pesticides to be stored or 185% if you are in an environmentally sensitive area.

Signage

The store will need to be secure/lockable and fitted with safety signage to identify it as a pesticide store. “No smoking” symbols and signage should also be fitted to the door. Ventilation is an essential requirement to prevent the build up of harmful vapours inside the pesticide store.

Light & Heat

Heaters can be installed to protect pesticides from freezing temperatures. Appropriate lighting should be installed also. The pesticides should be stored on shelving with liquids close to the floor and powders stored above.

Spillage

A spill kit should be fitted to deal with any spills outside the bund (during deliveries etc.) and an eye wash station should also be installed inside the area.