SACRAMENTO– The Air Resources Board (ARB) and the State Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) will hold public workshops to gather public comments on the phase-down of rice straw burning in the Sacramento Valley. The following are the locations and times:

The workshops will begin with brief presentations from ARB and CDFA staffs on the status of the phase-down, followed by public comments. No decisions will be made at the workshops; however, this is the best opportunity for the public to offer comments about the phase-down while preliminary drafts are being written.

The report submitted to the Legislature will reflect information gathered at these workshops. A draft copy of the report will be available for public review and comment in May and a revised report will be discussed at the ARB's August meeting.

These actions are being taken in accordance with 1991 legislation to phase-down rice straw burning in the Sacramento Valley. The phase-down statute progressively reduces the percentage of acres that may be burned until 2000 and requires the ARB and CDFA to develop a biennial report to the Legislature for each year's burn program, with consideration to comments gathered from stakeholders. Unless the Legislature makes changes to the plan, the law allows growers to burn 38 percent of their crops in 1997, down from 50 percent in 1996.