BATON ROUGE - A Minden lawmaker has scrapped his proposal to ban open burning of hazardous waste in Louisiana, after failing to gain traction for the idea.

Democratic Rep. Gene Reynolds said his bill "was not going anywhere." It was aimed at addressing concerns from people who live near Clean Harbors, a Colfax waste disposal company. Open burning, critics say, poisons air and drinking water.

With his ban proposal stalled, Reynolds asked the House to direct the Department of Environmental Quality to collect and study water, soil and air samples in Colfax. The House voted 87-0 Monday for the resolution.

The resolution requires DEQ and Clean Harbors to form a "dialogue committee" to discuss cleaner burning options.

Reynolds called the effort "a good compromise."