EUGENE, Ore. (AP) — Oregon’s new ban on most field burning takes effect this summer. However, grass seed farmers and environmental lawyers are still sparring over how to determine who’s entitled to a burn permit out of a small allotment for farmers facing extreme economic hardship.
Historically, farmers in the south Willamette Valley burned about 40,000 acres. This year the total burn allotment for hardship cases is 2,000 acres. The Environmental Quality Commission will vote in mid-August on the proposed rules.
Separately, the new law allows 15,000 acres of field burning to continue in the northern Willamette Valley by growers of particular grass species on steep terrain.
Grass seed farmers have long burned their fields to get rid of pests.
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Information from: The Register-Guard, http://www.registerguard.com
