When will the farce of straw burning control finally end?

During a recent survey in several major agricultural counties in Henan, reporters found that the ban on straw burning has now become the "number one difficulty" in grassroots governance. Officials camp out in the fields and sleep at the field edges, with grievances they dare not voice. County-level finances spend millions upon millions, feeling the pressure acutely. Yet despite tight guarding, straw still has no smooth outlet, making the ban ineffective. (June 28, Economic Information Daily)

In the past, straw was an important living resource in rural areas, used for cooking fires. In recent years, as the rural energy structure has changed, biogas, electricity and natural gas have gradually entered millions of households, and straw has increasingly become a chicken rib - "tasteless to eat, wasteful to throw away." Especially today, as labor costs gradually rise, burning it all is considered the best policy. Yet what follows is environmental pollution, and concentrated straw burning can even affect traffic.

To stop the adverse effects of straw burning, localities have rolled out many "local policies" to deal with it, and many cases have emerged of people being fined or even jailed for burning straw, with some officials dismissed as a result. Scene after scene has played out of the "farce" of mobilizing all forces to stop straw burning. Leaving aside whether the various penalties are legal, the results alone show that punishment alone is by no means a good remedy for managing straw burning.

In the era of the market economy, everyone keeps a ledger in their heart. Why do farmers burn straw? Because it is the most cost-effective. Farmers may not understand profound economic principles, but they weigh the costs and benefits of burning straw in their hearts. For several days of labor, the straw from 3 mu of land can bring ordinary people only a little over 100 yuan in returns, no better than a day of odd jobs at a construction site. Anyone in their place would also "burn it all."

Some places hope to stop straw burning through subsidies, which I dare not agree with. In my view, the key to managing straw burning lies in raising the economic value of straw. Rather than spending funds on subsidies for disposing of straw, it would be better to invest those funds in research institutions, so that straw can become a raw material for feed or an environmentally friendly fuel. Only by raising the value of straw, so that handling it by means other than burning can bring ordinary people some real benefits, will the problem of straw burning naturally collapse on its own.