WHILE voluntary harvest fire management protocols have generally been well accepted by grain growers this year there have still been controversies, particularly in the total fire ban (TFB) system.
Some farmers have questioned the TFB assessment process, saying there were two days declared in Victoria that ended up being either cold or benignly warm with little wind.
"We have had a couple where you are not sure whether a TFB needed to be called, Friday a week ago was quite hot, but there was no TFB, the next day was much cooler and with higher humidity but there was a ban in place," Kaniva farmer Jonathon Dyer said.
"There is no problem in calling a TFB but it would be nice if it was a little transparent about the rationale," he said.
Marshall Rodda, of the Victorian Country Fire Authority, confirmed farmers could still harvest until they received the call from the local CFA, however the TFBs have an influence with bulk handlers generally closing in the afternoon on TFB days, meaning harvest could be ground to a halt due to a lack of space for grain.
This has raised the ire of some growers, but Mr Rodda said he was happy to err on the side of caution.
"Fires happen despite the best of our abilities, but if we can stop them on the risky days it makes it a lot easier," he said.
"Harvest is a busy time, I'd recommend just taking the afternoon off and recharging the batteries, it does not hurt to have a break."
There have been a number of harvest fires once again this year, with a large percentage of these occurring in lentil crops.
Lentils are notoriously bad for starting fires as static electricity causes the fine dust kicked up from the dry plant to settle on hot elements of the harvester, which then ignites.
This year in the region 17 fire district of the CFA, taking in the lentil belt of the Wimmera, there have been 17 reported header fires already.
Victoria and South Australia grow the majority of the nation's lentils, but Mr Rodda did not think there needed to be extra formal regulation for lentil producers.
"You want to keep the scheme simple, too many rules and it gets hard to follow," Mr Rodda said.
It was a similar story in SA, where Grain Producers South Australia chairman Adrian McCabe said he was happy to leave things as they were.
"Our members realise that lentils are a riskier crop but we don't want to start chopping and changing with how you can operate, a clear message is best," said Mr McCabe.
He said instead regular reminders to blow down the header more frequently and take extra care would help to minimise the risk.
In terms of the schemes, both men said decisions had been taken to be proactive and impose voluntary limits on harvesting in dangerous weather to reduce the likelihood of an onerous centralised system.
"Self-regulation is working well and the majority of farmers are doing more to minimise the risk of fire, stopping earlier and making sure there are fire carts near the headers," Mr Rodda said.
"We know that if we don't put an effort in to have a working voluntary system in place we're going to have one implemented for us and that could be a lot less workable," he said.