(1) Any person who proposes to set fires in the course of:

     (a) Weed abatement;

     (b) Instruction in methods of fire fighting, except training to fight structural fires as provided in RCW 52.12.150 or training to fight aircraft crash rescue fires as provided in subsection (5) of this section, and except forest fire training; or

     (c) Agricultural activities,

shall obtain a permit from an air pollution control authority, the department of ecology, or a local entity delegated permitting authority under RCW 70.94.654. General permit criteria of statewide applicability shall be established by the department, by rule, after consultation with the various air pollution control authorities. Permits shall be issued under this section based on seasonal operations or by individual operations, or both. All permits shall be conditioned to insure that the public interest in air, water, and land pollution and safety to life and property is fully considered. In addition to any other requirements established by the department to protect air quality pursuant to other laws, applicants for permits must show that the setting of fires as requested is the most reasonable procedure to follow in safeguarding life or property under all circumstances or is otherwise reasonably necessary to successfully carry out the enterprise in which the applicant is engaged, or both. All burning permits will be designed to minimize air pollution insofar as practical. Nothing in this section shall relieve the applicant from obtaining permits, licenses, or other approvals required by any other law. An application for a permit to set fires in the course of agricultural burning for controlling diseases, insects, weed abatement or development of physiological conditions conducive to increased crop yield, shall be acted upon within seven days from the date such application is filed. The department of ecology and local air authorities shall provide convenient methods for issuance and oversight of agricultural burning permits. The department and local air authorities shall, through agreement, work with counties and cities to provide convenient methods for granting permission for agricultural burning, including telephone, facsimile transmission, issuance from local city or county offices, or other methods. A local air authority administering the permit program under this subsection (1)(c) shall not limit the number of days of allowable agricultural burning, but may consider the time of year, meteorological conditions, and other criteria specified in rules adopted by the department to implement this subsection (1)(c).

     (2) Permit fees shall be assessed for burning under this section and shall be collected by the department of ecology, the appropriate local air authority, or a local entity delegated permitting authority pursuant to RCW 70.94.654 at the time the permit is issued. All fees collected shall be deposited in the air pollution control account created in RCW 70.94.015, except for that portion of the fee necessary to cover local costs of administering a permit issued under this section. Fees shall be set by rule by the permitting agency at the level determined by the task force created by subsection (4) of this section, but shall not exceed two dollars and fifty cents per acre to be burned. After fees are established by rule, any increases in such fees shall be limited to annual inflation adjustments as determined by the state office of the economic and revenue forecast council.

     (3) Conservation districts and the Washington State University agricultural extension program in conjunction with the department shall develop public education material for the agricultural community identifying the health and environmental effects of agricultural outdoor burning and providing technical assistance in alternatives to agricultural outdoor burning.

     (4) An agricultural burning practices and research task force shall be established under the direction of the department. The task force shall be composed of a representative from the department who shall serve as chair; one representative of eastern Washington local air authorities; three representatives of the agricultural community from different agricultural pursuits; one representative of the department of agriculture; two representatives from universities or colleges knowledgeable in agricultural issues; one representative of the public health or medical community; and one representative of the conservation districts. The task force shall identify best management practices for reducing air contaminant emissions from agricultural activities and provide such information to the department and local air authorities. The task force shall determine the level of fees to be assessed by the permitting agency pursuant to subsection (2) of this section, based upon the level necessary to cover the costs of administering and enforcing the permit programs, to provide funds for research into alternative methods to reduce emissions from such burning, and to the extent possible be consistent with fees charged for such burning permits in neighboring states. The fee level shall provide, to the extent possible, for lesser fees for permittees who use best management practices to minimize air contaminant emissions. The task force shall identify research needs related to minimizing emissions from agricultural burning and alternatives to such burning. Further, the task force shall make recommendations to the department on priorities for spending funds provided through this chapter for research into alternative methods to reduce emissions from agricultural burning.

     (5) A permit is not required under this section, or under RCW 70.94.743 through 70.94.780, from an air pollution control authority, the department, or any local entity with delegated permit authority, for aircraft crash rescue fire training activities meeting the following conditions:

     (a) Firefighters participating in the training fires must be limited to those who provide fire fighting support to an airport that is either certified by the federal aviation administration or operated in support of military or governmental activities;

     (b) The fire training may not be conducted during an air pollution episode or any stage of impaired air quality declared under RCW 70.94.715 for the area where training is to be conducted;

     (c) The number of training fires allowed per year without a permit shall be the minimum number necessary to meet federal aviation administration or other federal safety requirements;

     (d) The facility shall use current technology and be operated in a manner that will minimize, to the extent possible, the air contaminants generated during operation; and

     (e) Prior to the commencement of the aircraft fire training, the organization conducting training shall notify both the: (i) Local fire district or fire department; and (ii) air pollution control authority, department of ecology, or local entity delegated permitting authority under RCW 70.94.654, having jurisdiction within the area where training is to be conducted.

     Written approval from the department or a local air pollution control authority shall be obtained prior to the initial operation of aircraft crash rescue fire training. Such approval will be granted to fire training activities meeting the conditions in this subsection.

     (6) Aircraft crash rescue fire training activities conducted in compliance with *this subsection are not subject to the prohibition, in RCW 70.94.775(1), of outdoor fires containing petroleum products and are not considered outdoor burning under RCW 70.94.743 through 70.94.780.

     (7) To provide for fire fighting instruction in instances not governed by subsection (6) of this section, or other actions to protect public health and safety, the department or a local air pollution control authority may issue permits that allow limited burning of prohibited materials listed in RCW 70.94.775(1).

[1998 c 43 § 1. Prior: 1995 c 362 § 1; 1995 c 58 § 1; 1994 c 28 § 2; 1993 c 353 § 1; 1991 c 199 § 408; 1971 ex.s. c 232 § 1.]

NOTES:

     *Reviser's note: The reference to "this subsection" appears to be erroneous, and should instead refer to subsection (5) of this section.

     Finding -- 1991 c 199: See note following RCW 70.94.011.