Pesticide General Permit (PGP)

The Pesticide General Permit covers discharges of biological pesticides, biochemical pesticides, and chemical pesticides as defined in the permit to surface waters of the state. In addition, the discharge of residues resulting from the application of biological agents and chemicals are covered under the permit.

The Utah Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Water Quality (DWQ), has issued the Utah Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (UPDES) Pesticide General Permit (PGP) for the application of pesticides to state waters which is based on the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Pesticide General Permit and Utah Administrative Code (UAC) in R317-8-9. The PGP is issued to protect and maintain water quality through regulation of when, how, and where pesticides may be applied to surface waters of the state. The permit will cover pesticide treatment activities of those operators who submit notice of intents (NOIs), pay their annual permit fees, and are in compliance with the PGP.

For specific permit requirements, please see the permit info on the Current Permits & Forms page under General Permits, then Application of Pesticides: UTG170000.

NeT/CDX Login

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1. Do I require the permit?

In order to require the permit, an operator must apply pesticides to surface waters of the state, be in an approved operator group, have applications in an approved pesticide use group, and require Notice of Intent (NOI) submission based on the size of an operator’s treatment area and where pesticides are applied. Operators which do not require the PGP may voluntarily obtain the permit. In addition, some pesticide applicators which do not qualify for the PGP may need to obtain an individual UPDES permit.

Persons involved in the application of pesticides, biological agents, or chemicals to surface waters of the state must obtain the permit.

Only pesticide treatments to state waters with actual water in the waterbody at the time of treatment requires PGP coverage.

Operators are entities or individuals who employ any person to apply pesticides, organizations or individuals who apply pesticides themselves, entities who are involved in the financing of pesticide applications, or anyone who makes decisions regarding the application of pesticides on, in, or over surface waters of the state. Operators generally include the entity with control over the financing and the decisions to perform pesticide applications and the entity with day-to-day operational control of permit-related activities (e.g. pesticide application). As such, more than one entity may require permit coverage for a given pesticide application.

Operators that discharge pesticides to surface waters of the state must be in one of the following operator groups:

Group 1. Operators that apply to Category 1 Waters
Group 2. Operators who are government, quasi-government, or special service districts
Group 3. Other operators such as contractors, companies, individuals, hunting clubs, canal companies, etc.
Group 4. Operators involved in a declared pest emergency situation
Group 5. Operators that apply pesticides to Utah Lake to treat algae, cyanobacteria, pathogens, or to provide abatement of nutrients

As of January 2023, all NOIs must be submitted in NeT PGP. NOIs are required under the following conditions:

Group 1. Operators that apply to Category 1 Waters will be notified by DWQ when a NOI is due (Category One Waters are surface waters within boundaries of National Forests)
Group 2. Operators must submit NOIs for pesticide application of any size to surface waters of the state
Group 3. Operators must meet a treatment threshold to require the permit
Group 4. Operators must have a declared pest emergency situation and meet the NOI requirement for their respective operator group, whether in group 1, 2, 3, or 5
Group 5. Operators must submit NOIs for pesticide application of any size to Utah Lake to treat algae, cyanobacteria, pathogens, or for nutrient abatement

Pesticides must be applied to a minimum treatment area before the permit is required. Group 3 operators must submit a NOI for treatments that meet the following thresholds:

Mosquito and other flying insect control; 6,400 acres
Weeds and plant control; 80 acres or 20 miles in water at water’s edge
Nuisance animal control; 80 acres or 20 miles in water at water’s edge
Forest Canopy Pest Control; 6,400 acres
Algae, cyanobacteria, pathogen control, and nutrient abatement; 80 acres or 20 miles in water at water’s edge for nuisance animal control

2. How do I use NeT PGP to obtain permit coverage?

To obtain permit coverage, operators must set up an account in Central Data Exchange (CDX), submit a NOI in NeT PGP, submit in NeT their Pesticide Discharge Management Plan and the request form to Apply Pesticides to Category One Waters (if Category 1 Waters are treated), pay their annual permit fee, and comply with all permit requirements.

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3. What is my annual permit fee and how do I make a payment?

The permit fee must be paid to obtain and maintain permit coverage year-to-year. Brand-new operators should contact DWQ for fee amounts and payment instructions. Prorated quarterly-based fees are only available for new operators with new applications. Please note that fees are subject to change year to year.

Please contact Susan Woeppel, [email protected] , (801) 536-4354, if you have questions or need assistance regarding permit fee payments.

Fee payment instructions

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Fees are based on the operator group and size of the area where pesticides are applied each year. The area treated and the number of treatments determine the size of the application area. If 50 acres are treated three times, the application area is 150 acres, not 50 acres. Please refer to the three tables below to determine your operation’s permit fee amount based on the size of the annual application area.

Group 2 (Government) and Group 5 (Utah Lake) Operators

	Small	Medium	Large
Mosquitoes	1 to 49,999 acres	50,000 to 74,999 acres	75,000 + acres
Weed and Plant	1 to 149 acres 1 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 299 miles	300 + acres 300 + miles
Nuisance Animals	1 to 149 acres 1 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 300 miles	300 + acres 300 + miles
Forest Canopy	1 to 49,999 acres	50,000 to 99,000 acres	100,000 + acres
Algae, Cyanobacteria, Pathogens, or Nutrient Abatement	1 to 149 acres 1 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 299 miles	300 + acres 300 + miles

Other Operators, All Operators Except Groups 2 and 5

	Small	Medium	Large
Mosquitoes	6,400 to 49,000 acres	50,000 to 74,999 acres	75,000 + acres
Weed and Plant	80 to 149 acres 100 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 299 miles	300 + acres 300 + miles
Nuisance Animals	80 to 149 acres 100 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 299 miles	300 acres 300 miles
Canopy	6,400 to 49,999 acres	50,000 to 99,999 acres	100,000 + acres
Algae, Cyanobacteria, Pathogens, or Nutrient Abatement	80 to 149 acres 100 to 199 miles	150 to 299 acres 200 to 299 miles	300 + acres 300 + miles

Annual Permit Fee and Quarterly Prorated Fees for FY 2025 (July 1, 2024-June 30, 2025)

	Small Operator, ($)	Medium Operator, ($)	Large Operator, ($)
Full Year	276	690	2278
New Operators After October 1	207	518	1709
New Operators After January 1	138	345	1139
New Operators After April 1	69	173	570

Need help?

For permit-related or NeT PGP questions …

Don Hall, [email protected] , (801) 536-4492

For permit fee payment questions …

Susan Woeppel, [email protected], (801) 536-4354

For CDX account set up or problems …

CDX Help Desk, (888) 890-1995

For NeT PGP problems …

NeT Help Desk, (877) 227-8965

Emergency Contacts

In the event of an emergency immediately contact local emergency services as needed, and the local county health department.

Please contact DWQ to report pesticide-related emergencies and spills within 24-hours of the incident, or sooner if there is imminent danger to the environment or human health.

DWQ 24-Hour Spills Line, (801) 536-4123
DWQ Operator, (801) 536-4300
Don Hall, (801) 536-4492

1. Do I require the permit?

1.1. Who is an Operator under the permit?

1.2. Which operator group am I in?

1.3. What types of pesticide use are allowed by the permit?

1.4. When do operators need to submit Notices of Intents (NOIs) for permit coverage?

1.5. What are the treatment area thresholds for NOI submission for operator group 3?

2. How do I use NeT PGP to obtain permit coverage?

2.1 How do I create a CDX account and access Utah NeT PGP?

2.2. How do I submit a NOI in NeT PGP?

2.3. How do I change a NOI in NeT PGP?

2.4. Where can I find training on how to use CDX and NeT PGP?

Topics covered

Training recordings

2.5. Is there a template for the Pesticide Discharge Management Plan (PDMP)?

2.6. Where can I find the form to request pesticide applications to Category 1 Waters?

3. What is my annual permit fee and how do I make a payment?

3.1. When are permit fees due?

3.2. How much is my annual permit fee?

Group 2 (Government) and Group 5 (Utah Lake) Operators

Other Operators, All Operators Except Groups 2 and 5

Annual Permit Fee and Quarterly Prorated Fees for FY 2025 (July 1, 2024-June 30, 2025)

Need help?

Emergency Contacts