Idaho Crop Residue Disposal Program
(Smoke Management)

On March 7, 2008, Governor Otter signed House Bill 557 into law, transferring authority for the Crop Residue burning program from the Idaho State Department of Agriculture to the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality. This statute was the result of months of intense negotiations between growers, environmental groups, state agencies and commodity representatives and lays the framework for the reinstatement of agricultural field burning in Idaho. This important legislation and the accompanying administrative rules, will now have to go through the State Implementation Plan (SIP) process with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). As early as September, 2008, growers may once again be able to burn agricultural fields in Idaho.

Consequences of Illegal Agricultural Field Burning

The Appellate court decision in January of 2007 effectively invalidated agricultural burning of crop residue left in the field after harvest, as allowed in the current State Implementation Plan (“SIP”). The Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is currently working with the USEPA to revise the SIP. Until the SIP is revised, burning of agricultural field residue is not permitted in Idaho, outside of tribal reservation boundaries. Investigations of field burning complaints and enforcing legal prohibitions related to agricultural field burning will be conducted by DEQ. For a list of DEQ regional offices and contact information for complaints, go to the following link: http://www.deq.idaho.gov/about/regions/regional_managers.cfm#air. Growers who choose to burn despite the crop residue burning prohibition may face penalties from (1) ISDA in the 10 North Idaho counties, up to $10,000 per violation for second and subsequent violations; (2) the Department of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) in all Idaho counties, up to $10,000 per violation; and (3) citizen suits in all Idaho counties, up to $32,500 per violation.

Agricultural Field Burning in the Future

To reinstate rules permitting crop residue burning in the future, an air quality demonstration must be conducted to show emissions from crop burning do not violate the federal clean air standards. At the direction of the Governor’s office, DEQ has been working closely with ISDA, EPA, and stakeholders to define the scope of the air quality analysis needed. For an update of the current status of agricultural field burning in Idaho, you can go to the DEQ web page on this subject.

Agricultural Field Burning on Highly Erodible Lands
and Under Conservation Programs

This field burning ban may affect your conservation compliance plan required for participation in specific federal or state farm programs. You are encouraged to contact your local Natural Resources Conservation Service (“NRCS”) field office to discuss changing and upgrading your plan, especially if you participate in CSP or have highly erodible lands.

The Court Decision

The decision invalidated EPA’s approval of a modification to Idaho’s SIP. The State’s modification to the SIP explicitly included agricultural field burning as an allowable form of open burning.

The decision stemmed from a series of state law changes. In brief, the 1986 legislature prohibited DEQ from promulgating rules regulating agricultural field burning and repealed all existing agricultural field burning rules. This left the SIP silent as to agricultural field burning. EPA’s approval of the SIP was challenged when the prohibition was removed and DEQ attempted to reinsert the provision into the SIP as a clarification of long standing state law. The court held that this modification was not merely a clarification of the SIP but a substantive amendment. In the court’s view, agricultural field burning has been conducted illegally under Idaho’s SIP since 1993 when the 1986 rules were finally federally approved.

If you have any questions about the ISDA role in the new direction of the program, please do not hesitate to contact Celia Gould, Director, at (208) 332-8500, or George Robinson, ISDA Agricultural Section Manager, Crop Residue Disposal Program at (208) 332-8593. You can reach DEQ Director Toni Hardesty at (208) 373-0240 or Mike McGown at (208) 373-0575 for technical questions regarding the status of the SIP revisions. Additional information can also be obtained on IDEQ’s website http://www.deq.idaho.gov/air/prog_issues/burning/agricultural.cfm. Information regarding USDA Farm Programs can be obtained by contacting Bob Bartholomew at (208) 378-5703 or visiting www.id.nrcs.usda.gov.