THE POISONS ACT

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVII, Issue 200, 24 July 1937, Page 15

THE POISONS ACT

DUTIES OF THE PUBLIC. NECESSITY FOR CARE. The following statement Ims been issued by the Department of Health concerning the duties of the general public under the Poisons Act:— The majority of accidental cases of poisoning result from careless handling and storing on the part of the public. To obviate this regulations have been made under the Poisons Act which are intended to bring home to users of poisonous preparations the necessity for care. It is obvious that it is impossible to institute a system of inspection which would en- ! sure that the regulations are enforced in people’s private homes, but a knowledge of these regulations should give guidance to persons who handle poisons, and in cases of accident where investigations have to he made, should the fault he due to carelessness on the part of the owner of a poison, penalties may be enforced. DEFINITIONS OF POISONS. The ordinary citizen is not expected to know the long list of chemical substances which are classed as poisons; however, tho Act and the regulations make it the duty of the manufacturer or the retailer to see that all poisons retailed are properly packed and clearly marked so that the purchaser may be warned that ho is dealing with something which has poisonous properties. There are, how- | ever, certain exceptions to tho Jaw of labelling:— (a) A package of medicine dispensed or supplied by a medical practitioner or a chemist for internal use by human beings, although containing a poison, need not bo labelled “Poison” if on its Inbel appears the name of the person for whom it is supplied. The doctor or chemist is expected to warn tho user of any danger attaching to its use. If, however, it is a proprietary medicine nlready packed for general use, it must have the word “Poison” on the label, or alternatively, in the case of the more dilute medicines for internal use, it may bear the word “Caution: It is dangerous to exceed the stated dose.” j

(b) A package of medicine dispensed or supplied by a veterinary surgeon or a chemist for treatment of animals need not bear a declaration of the presence of poison if it is labelled with the name of the owner of the animal'and the words “Not for human use.”

(c) Should the package contain 20 ounces or more by liquid measure or by weight of a' mixture containing a poison so dilute that in the whole package there is not a poisonous dose, it need not be labelled as a poison. (d) Certain articles may contain poisons but in such a form that they are not likely to he taken by accident, for example, matches, (ireworks, pnliters’ inks and prepared paints. These need not he labelled as poisonous. Substances having poisonous properties arc divided into two groups:— (!) “Poisons” proper, such as arsenic, strychnine, and cyanides; and (2) “poisonous substances,” which include strong corrosives such as caustic potash or soda, ammonia and hydrochloric acid, and irritants such as carbolic and eresol disinfectants. The former are labelled “Poison,” and may he retailed only by a chemist, a doctor, a dentist, or a veterinary surgeon, and tho latter “Poisonous,” and may he retailed by. anyone subject to certain restrictions. • The “poisons” of the first group are classified in two schedules —the first schedule including the more potent poisons eithor pure or in strong solutions. In the second schedule will be found tho less dangerous poisons and tlie weaker solutions of these in the first schedule.

These poisons in the first and second schedules in general may bo retailed only by a registered chemist. But wo have two elnsses of poison grouped according to the purpose tor which they are intended to he used, namely: (.a) Poisons used in manufacturing processes or in laboratory work, but not intended for resale in an unaltered state, and

(b) Poisons intended for use exclusively for agricultural purposes. These a.re called third .schedule poisons, and include sheep dips, orchard sprays, weed killers and farm animal medicines.

Poisons in these two classes may he purchased retail not only from a chemist, but also from a firm having a wholesale poison license, while those intended for agricultural purposes may he obtained also from a person holding a storekeeper’s poison license. In the case of poisons required for the destruction of rabbits the rabbit board can hold such n license. in districts which arc more than five miles from tho nearest chemist the storekeeper’s poison license may be extended with the approval of the registrar to tlie sale of other poisons. There arc certain poisons which may be dispensed only by a chemist and on the prescription of a medical practitioner or a dentist. Thesis are chiefly

the poisons which are classed as habitforming drugs. DUTIES OF PURCHASERS.

(1) The first procedure required of a purchaser of poisons is to give the vendor his name and address, as it is necessary that records of all sales should be kept. This is not necessary, however, in tiio case of the second group—known as poisonous substances. In tlie case of the stronger first schedule poisons tho purchaser must also sign the entry made in the poisons hook kept by the vendor, and fiis signature must be witnessed. If tho purchaser is not personally known to the vendor the witness must ho someone

who is known to tho vendor and who

also knows the purchaser. The purchaser must also state his occupation and the purpose for which he requires tho poison. The purJhase of these first schedule poisons may be conducted hi' correspondence if the purchaser’s signature is known to the vendor, or if

lie has for witness to his signature a Justice of the Peace or police officer or someone whose signature is known to the vendor.

These restrictions as to signature do not apply to medicines supplied by a medical practitioner, a chemist, u dentist, or a veterinary surgeon. (2) Having duly purchased his poison, the purchaser must realise that he is responsible for its safe keeping. He may not give it away. to anyone else or lend it—such acts constitute a sale within the meaning of the regulations, and unless he holds a license lie may not sell.

(3) The safe storage of poisons or poisonous substances must occupy the attention of tho purchaser. He must not leave them where children may have access to them, nor place them in a box or cupboard in which foodstuffs arc stored, nor in any position in which by leakage or by vapours foods may be contaminated. They must be kept in a special place to which unauthorised persons do not have access. (41 The purchaser of a poison or poisonous substance must exercise great care as to the container in which he keeps tlie poison. By far tho greatest number of accidents from poisoning arise from carelessness in this respect on the part of the general public. Fo.* this reason the regulations forbid the use for storing poisons of ordinary domestic containers—beer or cordial bottles, jars, tins or other receptacles commonly used for the storage of foods. If a bottle, it must bo a bottle of distinctive type with fltilings or other markings on the surface so that u

person grasping it will ho warned, even 1 in the dark, that it is not an ordinary I bottle, and it must be in colour dark green, blue or amber. However, in the case of large amounts of over four pints these distinctions are not needed —the size then being greater than that of ordinary domestic bottles and therefore less likely to cause an error. If a jar or tin or cardboard carton is used it must ho strongly made-and effectively sealed so as to prevent leakage, and in all cases the bottle, jar. tin or carton must be duly labelled with the word “Poison” in clear letters, and in the ease of many poisons —nrsouieals, cyanides, strychnine, nicotine, and strong acids and disinfectants—also with a statement of the appropriate antidote to use ill enso of accident. It is obvious then that much tho wisest course is for tho purchaser to leave the poison in the container in which it is received from the packor, for then it should hear already all the necessary labels. The regulations provide that proof of storage in the container in which it was purchased is a sound defence if trouble should arise. PREVENTION OF ERROR.

A person who lias made up for immediate use a quantity of a poisonous mixture should either pour away tlie unused balance, or stoic it in some large labelled container about which no -error ■in use can a riser" To keep it in ordinary domestic bottles, tins or jars, not duly labelled, is tho source of many accidents and in future such a procedure will certainly load to prosecution if detected.

In regard to the use of paper hags, it is necessary to riiako reference to the use of such hugs in regard to certain sheep dips and arsenical orchard sprays. It is customary for some manufacturers to supply such materials in drums, but packed in hags of known weight for convenience in weighing out the amount required to make up tho dip or spray. So long as the hags are kept in tho original drum which should lie duly labelled by the manufacturer, the use of those bags in measuring for immediate use is not an offence. Tho hags cannot, however, lie sold separately by vendors, and the farmer or orohnrdist should not remove tho bags from tlie drum except for immediate use.

Due cnro must be exercised that I the labels on the package in which a poison is received are not destroyed, and in this connection persons lidding packages of poison must see to it that the warnings which should he found on every such package are not torn or washed off or defaced. In some cases it has been found that drums of poison hear the necessary warning on tho lid in such a way that the words are destroyed t\i opening. Such a position for these warnings is prohibited by the regulations. and should they bo offered for sale the purchaser would be well advised to refuse to purchase, or to bring the matter to the notice of the health authorities or tho police. (5) In preparing poisons for use, due care again must be taken in handling that foods or beverages should not be directly or indirectly endangered. In tho preparing of poison for rats, for example, it is customary to spread the material on thin sandwiches of bread. To do this work on the kitchen table is obviously unsafe. Instances of poisoning from this sort of thing are. known to tho department, more particularly in regard to making up solutions of arsenical mixtures for use in the treatment of certain diseases in sheep and cattle. Such work should he done on a table or bench never used for keeping or preparing vegetables or other foodstuffs. (6) Finally, when the container which has been used for the storage of poisons is empty, if it he of tin, cardboard or wood or a paper bag in the caso of the dips or sprays already mentioned, it must he forthwith destroyed to ensure that it is not subsequently used for purposes such as the storage of some foodstuff. There is a special danger attaching to bottles which have been used lor arsenical preparations such as weed killers, as deposits of arsenic not easily removed by the ordinary processes of washing arc apt to remain. Under these regulations only the special type of poison bottle will he permitted in packing such preparations, and it is hoped that ordinary common ' sense will warn people not to use poison bottles for domestic purposes. Apart from the danger it is desired that the special -type of bottle should bo reserved for poisons alone.