Two sides: State considers bill to end field burning; farmers look to production needs

By Jan Jackson

There are a couple of seasons upon us – the time of year seed farmers start the soil-cleansing process that paves the way for optimum grass seed yield and the time of year the legislative session, which had two bills pertaining to field burning, draws to a close.

House Bill 2183 – which would have modified the amount of acreage that could be burned, allowed a commission by order to permit emergency burning under certain conditions, modified fees for burning and allowed the Department of Environmental Quality to evaluate burning programs – died in committee.

Senate Bill 528 – which reduces the number of acres able to burn in the Willamette Valley to 20,000 in 2009 and eliminates the management tool in 2010, allows some burning of steep terrain and special species but phases out farmers’ ability to burn by 2013 – is still alive.

In addition, the legislation also phases out stack and pile burning, propane flaming of grass and cereal grain crops and allows the Environmental Quality Commission to regulate burning in counties outside the Willamette Valley.

Roger Beyer, executive secretary for the Oregon Seed Growers spoke in behalf of the approximately 150 growers who burned fields last year. “Open field burning is accomplished in a very few days,” Beyer said.

“All of last year’s field burns of 300 acres or more were done in 12 burn days and 80 percent of those fields were burned in six days. We are willing to come to the table and talk about reducing impact of field burning that takes place now, but we cannot agree to ban field burning all together.”

Though at this writing the outcome is unclear, the history of field burning is an interesting one. An accounting in the Oregon Blue Book, tells about the 1850s claimants of Donation Lands fencing their fields with split-rail fences, building log cabins and then beginning to work with a will to stop American Indians from field burning.

Field burning became common practice again in 1948, when the grass-seed industry found that the fire system allowed them to show a profit at least most of the time.

It also avoided the necessity of trying to grow crops whose methods would require annual tillage, lots of irrigation water and cause more soil erosion, dust, odor and chemical use.

By 1975, the DEQ had the ability to issue field burning permits and cite violations. In 1990, ODA assumed responsibility for the Smoke Management Program and shared enforcement duties with DEQ.

In 1991, the Oregon Legislature passed a new limitation to phase down acreage burned and limit certain types of burning.

By 1995, ODA assumed full responsibly for the field-burning program.

State Representative for House District 18 Vic Gilliam spoke in support of the agriculture community’s advocacy of field burning.

“I have carefully studied this contentious issue and I am convinced that despite these inevitable clashes between farmers and our burgeoning cities and towns, controlled field burning is essential to seed growers and our agricultural based economy,” Gilliam said. “It is my hope that this legislation that would be devastating to fine fescue farmers in my district will not see the light of day in the ‘horse trading’ that unfortunately mars the end of some legislative sessions.”

While the issue in the 1850s was to protect the land, the issue today is about protecting air quality.

At the time of this writing the fate of SB 528, is still in the Ways and Means Committee. Proponents and opponents alike are awaiting the outcome.