Market Data 
Prescribed burns used in farming and forestry management have long been vilified by environmental advocacy groups and some politicians. A new report released this week by researchers at Florida A&M and Tuskegee University, however, challenges the narrative spun by those who seek to prohibit prescribed burns, at least when it comes to their use by sugarcane growers.
The Tuskegee-Florida A&M study, whose findings were presented at a community event held in Belle Glade, Fla., on April 29, specifically examined “the potential environmental impacts of preharvest sugarcane burning on air quality in the Florida Everglades.” Speaking to an audience of more than 100 residents of Belle Glade and the surrounding communities, report authors explained that during the five month period in 2024 when the study was conducted, “the overall air quality remained within established acceptable limits and were comparable to some of the best air quality observed within the state.”
Dr. Olga Bolden-Tiller, Dean of the Tuskegee University’s College of Agriculture, Environment and Nutrition Sciences, one of the featured speakers at the April 29 event in Belle Glade, explained that this research was conducted to provide a better understanding of the tradeoffs associated with preharvest burning of sugarcane crops. The benefits of preharvest burning, which the report details, include “improved soil health, pest deterrence, and a reduction in the weight of the harvested crop, leading to lower transport costs.”
The documented benefits of preharvest burns, however, have not quelled opposition from environmental advocacy groups like the Sierra Club, which seeks to prohibit the practice. Dr. Bolden-Tiller explained how community engagement was a significant component of the Tuskegee-Florida A&M study. Dr. Bolden-Tiller and her colleagues did due diligence to incorporate all viewpoints and key stakeholders. She noted that critics of preharvest burning, like the Sierra Club, were invited to participate in the study, but that they declined to do so.
“I’m not afraid of any naysayer,” Dr. Bolden-Tiller told the audience on April 29. “I want to know what they have to say so we can see what the answer is.”
Asked why Sierra Club chose to not participate in the study, Patrick Ferguson, Senior Organizing Representative with the Sierra Club’s Florida chapter said they didn’t want to be associated with a study in which industry was also involved. Ferguson alleges the new report is biased and points to other studies whose conclusions align with the Sierra Club’s view on preharvest burns. He criticizes the Tuskegee-Florida A&M report for monitoring air quality during a period outside the “October-to-March burn season.”
At the April 29 event, however, Dr. Bolden-Tiller responded to the allegation that the study was conducted outside of the peak burn season, noting that prescribed burns take place throughout the year, not just from October to March. Dr. Bolden-Tiller expressed interest in conducting further air quality monitoring studies spanning longer periods of time, including the entire year.
From April 12 to September 5, Tuskegee and Florida A&M researchers measured air quality from six separate monitoring stations using the latest and most sensitive air quality monitoring technology. They found that even with a mid-May spike in particulate matter, “air quality remained consistently within the standard allowable air quality values over 24-hour periods according to the National Ambient Air Quality Standards.”
That mid-May peak in particulate matter, the report concludes, was not driven by preharvest sugarcane burns. The mid-May spike, the report explains, “was not due to preharvest burning as the particulate matter speciation analyses showed that any debris from preharvest sugarcane burning comprised <1% of the dust samples.
What’s more, not only did researchers discover that “the overall air quality within the larger region remained within established acceptable limits,” but that the air quality of the sugarcane growing region of south central Florida was “comparable to some of the best air quality observed within the state.”
Despite the evidence presented on Tuesday, the Sierra Club continues to express skepticism. “Nothing included in this recent study indicates that sugarcane burning is not a major public health threat or that the existing regulations are adequate to protect the public,” said Colin Walkes, former Mayor of Pahokee, Fla., who attended the April 29 event on behalf of Sierra Club.
“Even during harvest season, our air quality in the Glades is better than on the coast,” said Cheryl Stein, a former educator in Belle Glade who now serves as curator at the Laurence E. Will Museum. The findings of the Tuskegee-Florida A&M report, Stein added, are corroborated by air quality monitoring conducted by other sources, including the government. The most comprehensive source for local air quality information, Stein noted, is www.airqualitynow.com, which is produced through “a partnership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Park Service, NASA, Centers for Disease Control, and tribal, state, and local air quality agencies.”
The Tuskegee-Florida A&M report also highlighted the economic impact of the sugarcane industry on the region. “A recent report by Texas A&M University on the economic impact of the US Sugar Industry, showed that the sugarcane sector of the sugar industry was ~$13B and contributed 12,170 direct jobs, 24,031 indirect and 17,162 induced with a total of 53,363 jobs,” noted the Tuskegee-Florida A&M study. “The report further indicated that a substantial amount of the cane sugar produced in the U.S. came from Florida.”
“It is important to get this right as, by some studies, the sugar cane industry produces up to 19,201 jobs and $4.7 billion in the state of Florida,” Dr. Mark A. Brown, president and CEO of Tuskegee, said at the April 29 event, during which Dr. Bolden-Tiller added that the matter at hand is about tradeoffs. Tuskegee and Florida A&M researchers wrapped up their report by noting that “preharvest burning in the sugarcane industry requires an intricate balance where agribusiness not only supports the local economy but also fosters an environment that must be thoughtfully managed by not only the industry but also government (local, state and federal).”
