Carrancho v. California Air Resources Board

Opinion

RAYE, Acting R J.

In 1991 the Legislature enacted a statutory scheme to phase down the practice of burning rice straw left over after harvest and to develop alternative uses for the straw. These alternatives failed to materialize as hoped, and growers had to incorporate almost all of the straw back into the soil, a practice that was costly and contributed to the incidence of rice disease. In 1997 the Legislature amended the statute to suspend until 2000 the gradual reduction in the amount of straw burned. As part of the amendment, state agencies responsible for managing the phasedown…