Notice of Proposed Rulemaking

The City of Lowell, through Ordinance 308, has redefined the conditions under which recreational and religious ceremonial fires are allowed, and has detailed the time frames and conditions under which residential outdoor burning can take place. These changes necessitate updates to LRAPA Title 47 to maintain compliance and consistency. The proposed updates are intended to facilitate compliance, enhance enforceability, and improve air quality outcomes, while preserving the core purpose of the LRAPA rules.

Summary

In response to Ordinance 308 enacted by the City of Lowell, Oregon, the Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA) is preparing to update Title 47 – Outdoor Burning of its rules. These updates will ensure LRAPA’s rules align with the latest regional regulations concerning outdoor burning practices, specifically those pertaining to recreational fires, religious ceremonial fires, and residential outdoor burning within the city limits of Lowell and its surrounding urban growth boundary.

The City of Lowell, through Ordinance 308, has redefined the conditions under which recreational and religious ceremonial fires are allowed, and has detailed the time frames and conditions under which residential outdoor burning can take place. These changes necessitate updates to LRAPA Title 47 to maintain compliance and consistency.

The proposed updates are intended to facilitate compliance, enhance enforceability, and improve air quality outcomes, while preserving the core purpose of the LRAPA rules.

The development of the State Implementation Plan (SIP) for these updates involves consultation with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (ODEQ). Throughout this process, the team will ensure that these updates adequately represent the interests of the Lowell community, support regional air quality improvement efforts, and fulfill state and federal air quality mandates.

Public Participation

LRAPA will accept public comments on this proposed rulemaking starting February 1, 2024 and ending March 14, 2024 with the public hearing at the LRAPA March Board meeting.

LRAPA will hold one public hearing on this proposed rulemaking:

Date: March 14, 2024
Start time: 12:15 PM
Street address:1010 Main Street
Room: Large LRAPA Conference Room
City: Springfield, Oregon 97477
Teleconference phone number: +1 253 215 8782
Webinar link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82551664224

Additional Information

To view copies of the notice documents, learn more about this rulemaking, and how to submit comments, you can view the LRAPA website calendar at: LRAPA Calendar.

If you want to receive future email notices about this rulemaking, you must sign up at: https://www.lrapa.org/air-quality-protection/public-calendar/sign-up-for-updates/

You can also obtain more information about this rulemaking by contacting:

LRAPA Rules Coordinator
1010 Main Street
Springfield, Oregon 97477
rules@lrapa.org

Public Notice documents:

Accessibility and Accommodations
People needing special accommodations to participate in LRAPA public hearings such as assistive listening devices or accessible formats such as large print, Braille, electronic documents, or audio tapes, should please contact the LRAPA office as soon as possible, but preferably at least 72 hours in advance.
For people requiring language interpretation services, including qualified ASL interpretation, please contact the LRAPA office as soon as possible, but preferably at least 5 business days in advance so that LRAPA can provide the most comprehensive interpretation services available.
Please contact the LRAPA Non-Discrimination Coordinator at accessibility@lrapa.org or by calling the LRAPA office at 541-736-1056 ext. 233.

Las personas que necesiten acomodaciones especiales para participar en las audiencias públicas de LRAPA, como dispositivos de asistencia auditiva o formatos accesibles como letra grande, Braille, documentos electrónicos o cintas de audio, deben comunicarse con la oficina de LRAPA lo antes posible, pero preferiblemente por lo menos 72 horas de antemano.
Para las personas que requieren servicios de interpretación de idiomas, incluida la interpretación calificada de ASL, comuníquese con la oficina de LRAPA lo antes posible, pero preferiblemente por lo menos 5 días laborales de antemano para que LRAPA pueda proporcionar los mejores servicios de interpretación disponibles.
Comuníquese con la Coordinadora de Antidiscriminatoria de LRAPA en accessibility@lrapa.org o llamando a la oficina de LRAPA al 541-736-1056 ext. 400.