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Smoke Management RAC debates definitions and scope; agrees to clarify pile‑burn registration and simplify prescribed‑burning language
Summary
At a Smoke Management Rulemaking Advisory Committee meeting, members debated Level 1/2 scope, mop‑up and pile‑burning definitions, and whether pile‑burn registration can satisfy smoke‑management burn‑plan requirements. The committee deferred major fee decisions and scheduled follow‑up meetings to finalize wording.
Levi, the meeting moderator, opened the Smoke Management Rulemaking Advisory Committee No. 2 and led a full roll call before moving the group into discussion of proposed Level 1 and Level 2 regulations. Early in the meeting Chad introduced Dylan Johnson as an alternate observer for OFIC and Levi reminded attendees that ODF, DEQ and OHA staff were available on the call to answer technical questions.
The bulk of the session focused on definitions that shape how the rules will apply in practice. Members discussed whether Level 1 regulation should apply statewide for federal land within ODF protection districts and whether Level 2 should primarily target private burning practices on the East Side. James warned that proposed fee increases could become a disincentive to prescribed burning; Chad and others emphasized the group's directive not to create barriers to increasing the pace and scale of prescribed fire. As Levi summarized: "the goal is to increase the pace and scale, reduce barriers, but also, protect public health as we do so."
