Air district report examined by Florez at hearing
| Thursday, Jul 29 2010 05:31 PM
Last Updated Thursday, Jul 29 2010 05:31 PM
Officials on both sides of the debate over open-field burning in the San Joaquin Valley said they were encouraged by a hearing in Sacramento earlier this week.
The meeting was called by State Sen. Dean Florez to challenge the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District on its recent report, which claims that disposal of agricultural waste in more environmentally friendly ways is not economically feasible for certain area farmers.
How the report's statistical data were compiled was a focal point of the hearing.
Florez, D-Shafter, was somewhat surprised when Valley Air District executive director Seyed Sadredin presented him with new data that were closer to the numbers calculated by Florez's staff.
"We had to, on the spot, change our approach because they conceded some of the very points we were trying to make," said Mark Arax, senior policy director for Florez. "But the second report has serious flaws as well."
Florez advocated for a complete burn ban -- the goal of a 2003 Senate bill -- with exemptions for individual farms on a case-by-case basis, Arax said.
Sadredin, meanwhile, said he suggested financial assistance for farmers to help them get rid of waste without contributing to the region's poor air quality.
"We both want to work toward 100 percent elimination of ag burning," Sadredin said. "I got a sense that there was some understanding."
Still, the legal effects of the hearing remain unclear. The California Air Resources Board, which approved of the local air district's recommended exemptions a few months ago, can affect policy change by removing its concurrence. It has a review meeting scheduled for September.
"The air board just trusted the air district's report," Arax said. "Now the ARB has to go back and take a look and do its own study to determine what farmers should be exempted."
