NCAP works to reduce pesticide use at the local, regional and national levels through policy change, advocacy and legislation.

Below are some fact sheets for common pesticides. We cannot provide legal assistance or advise on pesticide application. Check with your local bar association for legal assistance. For more information about pesticides, visit Pesticide Action Network.

If you must use pesticides, please do so very carefully with personal protective equipment (PPE) and follow all instructions for the product. View this helpful guide on how to read pesticide labels, from the Clackamas River Basin Council.

For expert advice tailored to your pest or weed issues, check out our sliding scale Pest and Weed Management Consultation services.

• 2,4-D
  • Widely used herbicide on rangeland, pasture, wheat, and home lawns.
• ALDICARB
  • Carbamate insecticide/acaricide; among the most acutely toxic pesticides registered in the U.S.
• ATRAZINE: Toxicology
• ATRAZINE: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Common triazine herbicide; disrupts immune and hormone systems according to research.
• BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS (B.T.)
  • Biological insecticide—live microbe lethal to certain insect pests.
• BORIC ACID AND BORATES
  • Least-toxic options used against insects, mites, algae, fungi, and weeds.
• BACILLUS THURINGIENSIS KURSTAKI (BTK)
  • Frequently sprayed for moth caterpillars; assess potential long-term exposure concerns.
• BIFENTHRIN: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Broad-spectrum insecticide/miticide; high risk to aquatic invertebrates—follow BMPs to protect salmonids.
• CARBARYL
  • Widely used carbamate insecticide (e.g., Sevin) in agriculture and home gardens.
• CHLOROTHALONIL
  • Major fungicide for peanuts, tomatoes, potatoes, turf, and roses.
• CHLORPYRIFOS: Toxicology
• CHLORPYRIFOS: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
• CHLORPYRIFOS ALTERNATIVES
  • Organophosphate insecticide with broad exposure; see BMPs and least-toxic alternatives.
• CHROMATED COPPER ARSENATE (CCA)
  • Arsenic/copper/chromium wood preservative used on posts, decking, and playground structures.
• CLOPYRALID
  • Herbicide for turf, pasture, rights-of-way, and certain crops (e.g., sugarbeets, mint, wheat).
• CYFLUTHRIN
  • Synthetic pyrethroid insecticide with notable potency; review associated hazards.
• CYPERMETHRIN
  • Synthetic pyrethroid used on crops and for household pest control.
• DACTHAL
  • Herbicide (DCPA/chlorthal-dimethyl) for turf, ornamentals, and various fruit/vegetable crops.
• DEET
  • Common personal insect repellent applied to skin and clothing.
• DIAZINON: Toxicology
• DIAZINON: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Organophosphate insecticide with extensive household use—millions of U.S. applications annually.
• DICAMBA
  • Widely applied herbicide in corn, wheat, and turf; environmental and toxicology concerns.
• DICHLOBENIL
  • Herbicide for beds, orchards, and berries; notably toxic to nasal tissue.
• DICHLOROPROPENE
  • Soil fumigant (1,3-D); poses exposure risks to workers and raises sustainability concerns.
• DIURON: Toxicology
• DIURON: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Commonly used for vegetation control along rights-of-way and in certain crops.
• FIPRONIL
  • Insecticide in baits/gels and pet, turf, and agricultural products.
• GLUFOSINATE
  • Non-selective herbicide for landscape/industrial areas and directed sprays in orchards/vineyards.
• GLYPHOSATE FACTSHEET
• GLYPHOSATE & ALTERNATIVE WEED MANAGEMENT
• EL GLIFOSATO Y EL MANEJO ALTERNATIVO
  • Among the world’s most used herbicides; use expanded with glyphosate-tolerant crops.
• IMAZAPIC
  • “Reduced-risk” herbicide designation doesn’t equal harmless—review environmental/health impacts.
• IMAZAPYR
  • Imidazolinone herbicide used in industrial/forest sites and rights-of-way (e.g., Arsenal/Chopper).
• IMIDACLOPRID: Toxicology
• IMIDACLOPRID: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Systemic neonicotinoid insecticide used broadly in ag, turf, pets, and homes.
• MALATHION
  • Common organophosphate; often used in eradication and mosquito control programs.
• MECOPROP MCPP
  • Selective broadleaf herbicide, often in mixes and “weed & feed” lawn products.
• METAM SODIUM
  • Widely used soil fumigant; heavy use in potato production across the western U.S.
• METHOMYL: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Broad-spectrum insecticide; NMFS found jeopardy for several threatened salmon/steelhead species.
• NALED
  • Organophosphate insecticide primarily for mosquito control (brand: Dibrom).
• NONYL
  • Nonylphenol surfactants used as “inerts” to increase pesticide spray retention and potency.
• ORYZALIN
  • Herbicide for turf, orchards/vineyards, ornamentals, and rights-of-way.
• OXYFLUORFEN: Best Management Practices to Protect Water and Fish
  • Pre/post-emergent herbicide; reaches streams via drift, erosion, and runoff from hard surfaces.
• PENTACHLOROPHENOL (PCP)
  • Wood preservative with historic uses in herbicides, antimicrobials, and industrial processes.
• PERMETHRIN
  • Synthetic pyrethroid used widely on crops and around homes.
• PICLORAM
  • Herbicide for rangeland, forestry, and rights-of-way (e.g., Tordon, Grazon).
• PIPERONYL BUTOXIDE
  • Synergist that increases potency of pyrethrins/pyrethroids; common in household products.
• PYRETHRINS/PYRETHRUM
  • Frequently used home/garden insecticides in sprays, shampoos, and aerosols.
• RESMETHRIN
  • Pyrethroid insecticide—more toxic/persistent than plant-derived relatives.
• SULFOMETURON METHYL
  • Sulfonylurea herbicide for non-ag settings (roadsides, industrial sites, public lands).
• SULFURYL FLUORIDE
  • Fumigant used to control termites and other pests in structures and wood products.
• SUMITHRIN
  • Synthetic pyrethroid (d-phenothrin) in many consumer products (e.g., Raid, Anvil).
• TRICLOPYR
  • Broadleaf herbicide for pastures, woodlands, and rights-of-way (Garlon 3A/4).