The historical use of pesticides in cultural heritage institutions (e.g. arsenic, mercuric chloride, etc.) creates an ongoing problem for many natural science, anthropology and herbaria collections. There are a number of resources available for further information in this area. Also visit our Health & Safety page in the Resources section of our site for important information on pesticides and residual dangers.
- The book Old Poisons, New Problems, A Museum Resource for Managing Contaminated Cultural Materials, edited by Odegaard and Sadongei, AltaMira Press, 2005, has a useful Appendices. Appendix G (pp. 101-102) lists Pesticide Information Websites, including all the major government sites. Information on the book is available through on-line bookstores.
- The ICOM Ethnographic Working Group has created Biocides in Museum Collections an excellent online bibliography.
- The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian website hosts a page on Pesticides that gives a brief overview of the issue.
- As items are returned to tribal communities, exposure to chemicals and pesticides becomes an issue due to the health risks involved. The Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian document Pesticides and Repatriated Objects contains a 2005 bibliography of selected resources and presentations pertaining to the topic of pesticides and repatriated objects.
- Ballard, Mary W. and Robert Koestler. 2014. Thirty Years of Pest Control in Museums: Policy and Practice. Examines changes to the Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute’s IPM over thirty years of operation.
- Deacy-Quinn, Christa. 2014. The Spurlock Museum’s Green Shield Certification – Lessons Learned. A discussion from the Spurlock Museum concerning its pursuit of the Green Shield Certification, which maintains the highest certification standards in the industry to ensure recognition of those implementing advanced IPM problems while protecting human healthy and the environment.
- Odegaard, Nancy and Alyce Sadongei, 2005. Old Poisons, New Problems: A Museum Resource for Managing Contaminated Cultural Material. Altamira Press. This publication provides a practical guide to identifying, testing for, and dealing with contaminated cultural materials archived in cultural heritage collections. With increasing indigenous involvement in the collection, handling, and more recently the repatriation of cultural artifacts formerly held in museum archives, there is an increasing need to educate both the museum community and tribal members about the potential risks of pesticide contamination on museum collections, and provide the means to test for, identify, analyze, and safely handle these artifacts. Special features include worksheets for performing basic tests, charts of scientific and historical information on known pesticides, data resources, and illustrations. Chapter 2 “Identifying the Pesticides: Pesticide Names, Classification, and History of Use” by Marilen Pool, Nancy Odegaard and Melissa J. Huber has comprehensive information on Pesticide History and Characteristics. The authors have granted permission for this chapter to be downloaded.
- The March 10, 2010 Smithsonian Museum Conservation Institute Workshop on Pesticide Mitigation was one of the first professional meetings dedicated to current research on removing pesticide residues from museum objects. Seven papers were presented at the workshop, and two more were added to introduce topics not focused on during the meeting but of significant importance when considering actual application of any of these methods.
- American Institute for Conservation Health & Safety Committee – Kerith Koss Schrager, Conservator, Kerith Koss Schrager Art Conservation, Kathy Makos, Industrial Hygienist, retired, Smithsonian Institution and Anne Kingery-Schwartz, Conservator, Kingery Conservation. 2014. Safety Risk Management of Residual Pesticides in Collections.
- Hawks, Cathy and Kathy Makos. 2014. Collateral Damage: Unintended Consequences of Vapor-Phase Organic Pesticides. Details the risks of lingering inhalation exposure for workers in cultural heritage institutions and visitors from objects treated with chemical pesticides, especially naphthalene and p-Dichlorobenzene.
- Hawks, Catharine, Michael McCann, Kathyrn Makos, Lisa Goldberg, David Hinkamp, Dennis Ertel, Jr. Patricia Silence (eds.), 2011. Health & Safety for Museum Professionals. Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections. Part 2, Chapter 9 on Chemical Hazards includes a discussion of pesticides, fumigants and preservatives.
- Hayes, W.J., Jr., and E.R. Laws, Jr. (eds.), 1991. Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology. 3 volumes, Academic Press. new edition published in 2010. Covers general principles of pesticide toxicology, effects of pesticide classes, and data on 256 compounds that have documented human effects.
- Linnie, M.J. 1990. “Conservation: Pest Control in Museums – The Use of Chemicals and Associated Health Problems,” International Journal of Museum Management and Curatorship, Vol 9. pp. 419 – 433. Provides an overview to many of the chemicals currently used in museums and their documented health effects.
- Anne Marigza, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, Jessica Meltzer, Smithsonian Institution, MSC, and JR Smith, Safety Manager, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. 2014. Crafting a Job Hazard Analysis in a Conservator’s Environment
- Rossol, M. and W.C. Jessup 1996. “No Magic Bullets: Ethical Considerations for Pest Management Strategies,” International Journal of Museum Management and Curatorship, Vol. 15. No. 2, pp. 145-168. This paper provides a cohesive and authoritative understanding of the ethical, legal, and regulatory aspects of pest management which must be considered when selecting treatments. Many biocides used in museums have been categorized by chemical class. Also included are some of the hazards associated with their use, the OSHA rules which must be followed, and the guarantees and assurances which should be written into contracts with commercial pest control operators.
- Watterson, A., 1989, Pesticide Users’ Health and Safety Handbook: An International Guide. Van Nostrand Reinhold. (Out of print.)
- Article from Smithsonian Institution Museum Conservation Institute (MC) on detecting arsenic on collections
http://www.si.edu/mci/downloads/reports/Arsenic2005.pdfThis document by the National Museum of the American Indian – Smithsonian Institution, contains a bibliography of selected resources and presentations pertaining to the topic of pesticides and repatriated objects. As items are returned to tribal communities, past exposure to chemicals and pesticides becomes an issue due to the health risks involved.
/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/04-NMAI-Pesticides-and-Repatriated-Objects-resources.pdfThe National Pesticide Information Center provides information on pesticide products, toxicology and environmental chemistry with MSDS database and more.
http://npic.orst.edu/index.htmlDownloadable Manufacturer Safety Data Sheets and pesticide labels from on-line retailer E-PestSupply.com
http://www.epestsupply.comThe University of Georgia College of Agricultural & Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension Service. Information on safe handling, storage and use of pesticides as well as first aid for pesticide exposure. http://www.ent.uga.edu/ipm/homeowner_ipm.htm#basics
Recognition and Management of Acute Pesticide Poisoning” by William M. Simpson, Jr., M.D., and Stanley H. Schuman, M.D., DrPH is available on the American Academy of Family Physicians News & Publications webpage.
http://www.aafp.org/afp/20020415/1599.htmlCrop Data Management Systems Inc. has a search engine where one can look up information about pesticides. You can search by common name, product name, manufacturer, crop, and/or pest.
https://www.cdms.net/Label-Database/Advanced-SearchKelly Solutions is used for a few different pesticide related matters. Contains information on state registrations of pesticides.
http://www.kellysolutions.com/