§ 37. Mr. Proctorasked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he is satisfied with current measures to reduce the adverse impact of straw burning; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Donald ThompsonYes. Although there have been isolated exceptions, the indications are that there has been less careless or inconsiderate burning of straw during this year's harvest season. I believe that a combination of strengthened byelaws, the publicity campaign mounted by my Department, and the code of practice issued by the National Farmers Union have contributed greatly to this improvement in the situation. Moreover, as the results of our continuing research and development work on alternative methods of disposal have been made known to the industry, an increasing number of farmers have been able to avoid straw and stubble burning altogether. These are encouraging trends, but we shall keep the matter under review.