Air Quality > Agricultural Burning

Agricultural Burning

The way agricultural burning is managed is changing in the Northwest, with Washington State leading the way. This change is part of a comprehensive revision of the state's air pollution laws that affects not just agriculture, but many other commercial, individual and governmental activities. The Clean Air Washington Act of 1991 (Chapter 70.94 RCW) states that those who contribute to air pollution will share the job of protecting air quality.

Agricultural burning is setting fire to:

• Crop residue after harvest in order to reduce excess plant material and hinder pest infestations
• Fruit tree debris from orchards after pruning or tree removal
• Cereal grain (wheat, barley, corn and oats) stubble after harvest

Contents:

Agricultural Burning Permit Applications

Daily Burn Decision

Hot Topics and Events

Blue Card for Central WA counties

Blue Card for Eastern WA counties

Agricultural burning permit applications

You must have an agricultural burning permit to do any agricultural burning.

While it is legal to burn for approved agronomic reasons with a permit, it is not legal to allow smoke to impact others. The agricultural burning of field crop residue and orchard tear out residue can directly impact the safety and health of citizens breathing the smoke-filled air. See Chapter 173-430 WAC - Agricultural Burning for more information.

Daily burn/no-burn decisions

To help reduce smoke-related environmental and health concerns, the Department of Ecology's Eastern Washington Burn Team makes a daily burn/no-burn decision called the "burn call" for agricultural burning permit holders. The burn call provides daily current and forecasted air quality conditions and burn decisions to citizens. You can get burn call information at:

• the daily burn call web site; or
• by calling 1-800-406-5322 for a recorded message.

You can also use the links below to subscribe or unsubscribe from email lists used to distribute the daily burn decisions.

ERO listserv (Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Walla Walla and Whitman counties)

CRO listserv (Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Klickitat and Okanogan counties)

The Ecology regional office responsible for the county in question makes the daily burn decision for that county. If you have questions about the daily burn decision, please contact the correct office for your county:

Eastern Regional Office (ERO): 509-329-3400
Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Walla Walla and Whitman counties

Central Regional Office (CRO: 509-575-2490
Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Klickitat and Okanogan counties

Hot Topics and Events

See upcoming events, hot topics, recent studies and innovations in Ecology's Agricultural and Outdoor Burning Programs.

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Post-Burn Reporting Forms (Blue Cards)

Blue Card for Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Klickitat and Okanogan counties

Blue Card for Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Walla Walla and Whitman counties

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• Alternatives to Burning
• Agricultural Burning
• Agricultural Burning Permits
• Agricultural Burning Publications
• Agricultural Burning and Research Task Force
• Agricultural Links
• Agricultural Research
• Air Quality Data
• Best Management Practices (BMPs)
• Burn Zone Map
• Burn Barrels
• Daily Burn Decision
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Local Clean Air Agencies
• Outdoor/Residential Burning
• Permitting Authorities
• Smoke Complaints
• Urban Growth Area (UGA) Maps for Washington State
• Weather and Monitoring
• Wood Processor List

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Contact Us for these counties: Adams, Asotin, Columbia, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Lincoln, Pend Oreille, Stevens, Walla Walla, and Whitman counties

Contact Us for these counties: Chelan, Douglas, Kittitas, Klickitat and Okanogan counties

Other County