Research underway on developing a stubble burning code of conduct

A motion was passed at the 2024 VFF Grains Conference in February to start working on the guidelines after farmers said complaints of smoke settling over urban areas were increasing.

VFF Grains Group vice president Ryan Milgate said developing the code of conduct was a proactive move for the farming community.

"The net effect of that is that we are seeing people burning all at once in conditions that aren't suitable, and what I mean by that is where complaints are coming from, which is around getting inversions at night, and smoke settling and hanging around," Mr Milgate said.

Mr Milgate said other farmers were also at times sick of their homes smelling of smoke through the autumn, but they recognised stubble burning was an essential tool.

"We want to know how we can minimise the impacts of burning on other people so that we can maintain that tool if we so choose to use it," he said.

He said the discussion would be "an interesting one" around managing their permits to burn.

"We've seen recently permits were given out in February near Ballarat prior to the major fire in the Pyrenees, and everyone acknowledges that when you have a fire everything goes out the window, and that's fine" he said.

Other regions in Victoria only had an opportunity to burn last week, according to Mr Milgate, which was frustrating for different reasons.

"Many of these areas have had a rain event, moist stubble and shorter days, which means we run into those issues about smoke hanging around," he said.

"It is a give and take from everyone where growers need to do the right thing from their perspective, but we also want the Country Fire Authority (CFA) and local councils to come on the journey.

"If we do our part, they need to do their part and give us reasonable windows that we can burn so that the impacts can be less on communities."

A CFA spokesperson said permits were "an important part of ensuring public safety during the fire season".

"We know that our farmers need the ability to undertake private stubble burning to prepare their land for cropping and hazard reduction," the spokesperson said.

"Where we see a change in weather conditions, wind and temperature, the issuing of these Schedule 13 permits may be withdrawn to reduce the fire risk."

The spokesperson said regulations over permits for stubble burning were being reviewed per normal government processes.

"Any proposed changes will be informed by feedback from members and stakeholders, including the farming sector," the spokesperson said.