House panel OKs field burning bill

BOISE - A measure to make law of a statewide field burning agreement was easily approved Thursday by the House Energy, Environment, and Technology Committee.

House Bill 557's co-sponsor, Rep. Ken Roberts, R-McCall, urged committee members to put the bill on the legislative fast track so state agency rules may be approved for a statewide crop residue burning season in Idaho this year.

“The urgency of this bill is quite important,” said Roberts, the House Majority Caucus Chair. “We need to have this signed by the governor by March 11.”

The House committee subsequently sent HB 557 unanimously to the House floor with a recommendation for full approval. The legislation may be up for a full House vote as early as today.

Patti Gora, the executive director of Safe Air For Everyone, said a May 9 target date has been set for Idaho to submit a documented plan to the federal Environmental Protection Agency to gain approval for crop residue burning to tentatively occur in October.

Idaho's agreement for the practice of burning crop residue came about through a series of negotiations between farmers, state agencies, and SAFE, that began in July, Gora said.

“I was very pleased to see the strong support coming from all quarters for the passage of this bill,” Gora said. “We at Safe Air For Everyone really feel that this is the best way to move forward. And this bill contains very strong public health protection.”

If HB 557 becomes law by March 11, DEQ Director Toni Hardesty said the agency's board would have the new law on its agenda March 12 to begin developing state agency rules.

“We need crop residue burning to occur, but also to protect public health,” Hardesty said.

The compromise legislation support came from several sources, including the directors of the Idaho departments of Environmental Quality and Agriculture, and SAFE, according to Thursday testimony.

HB 557 sets a limit for bluegrass field burning at 20,000 acres excluding the lands of Idaho Indian tribes, lowers the per acre burn fees from the current $4 to $2, shifts authority from Agriculture to the DEQ to regulate burning, and makes the names of burners a matter of public record.

The measure contains an emergency clause, meaning that it would become law immediately upon signing by the governor instead of the July 1 start of the state fiscal year that many pieces of legislation contain.

The highlights of the legislation for SAFE, Gora said, include the fact that it would prohibit field burning when particulate matter levels reach 75 percent of federal standard on any given day.

Gora said that particulate matter provision protects society's most vulnerable citizens, including hospital patients, senior citizens, and students.

“They cannot get up and run away from a smoke plume,” Gora said. “So, we wanted to make sure those citizens were especially protected.”