California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA, prohibits the use of autonomous agricultural equipment without a driver at the helm. The regulation requires that all “self-propelled equipment shall, when under its own power and in motion, have an operator stationed at the vehicular controls.”The regulation requires that all “self-propelled equipment shall, when under its own power and in motion, have an operator stationed at the vehicular controls.”

“It has the effect of preventing the use of any kind of autonomous vehicle in any agricultural location where people are employed,” said Bryan Little, chief operating officer of Farm Employers Labor Service and senior director of policy advocacy at the California Farm Bureau. 

In August, Cal/OSHA issued a memorandum clarifying that driverless tractors and other agricultural vehicles may be used when no field workers are present. When employees are absent, the memo stated, the location does not qualify as a worksite under the agency’s jurisdiction.

The directive gave a clear green light for farmers in California to use equipment such as an autonomous blast sprayer manufactured by the Fresno County-based company GUSS, which applies pesticides in orchards and vineyards, doing so without workers on site for chemical safety reasons. 

In November, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board announced it was empanelling an advisory committee that comprises of stakeholders to examine the regulation, signalling that the board may consider revising it. Proposed changes may face pushback from labour advocates, who in the past have raised concerns about the safety of autonomous equipment and cautioned that widespread adoption of it could lead to job losses for agricultural workers. 

Farm groups have vouched for the technology’s safety and said autonomous technology in many cases may improve worker safety and create upskilling opportunities for employees. Should Cal/OSHA end its ban on driverless tractors, farmers may see new types of equipment become available in the state.

“We are doing testing and product development so that when we are able to work with Cal/OSHA to modify the regulation, we will be ready to bring the products to market,” said Sundberg of John Deere. He said the company has a large autonomous row crop tractor used for tillage that it has introduced in the Midwest. “Eventually, we would like to work with the state to bring those out here to California,” Sundberg said. 

The committee’s first hearing is scheduled for next month. 

To learn more about the future of autonomous off-highway vehicles, hear keynote speeches about the latest innovations in the field, and visit a wide array of exhibitors, book your place to attend the 4th Autonomous Off-Highway Machinery Technology Summit will be taking place May 21-22, 2025 in Berlin, Germany.

For more information, click here or email us at info@innovatrix.eu for the event agenda.

Source:

AgAlert