I notice several readers' letters in various newspapers lamenting the poor performance of expensively installed air source heat pumps and saying they or their friends had installed a woodburner to keep warm.
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Wood burning stoves on the way out? Possible on-the-spot £300 fines
(84 Posts)Politicians and campaigners have called for an urgent review of wood-burning stoves, which cause large amounts of pollution in urban areas.
The calls follow the admission by the environment secretary that the government had set weaker air pollution targets than it would like. The admission came as she announced a new environmental plan for England that held back from banning wood-burning stoves and settled instead for “educating” people on their use.
The Times subsequently reported that the government would encourage councils to use their powers to issue householders £300 on-the-spot fines for flouting air pollution rules by burning logs at home.
But the Green party co-leader Carla Denyer said the government should go further and potentially end the sale of log burners.
She said: “Local authorities have powers to create smoke control areas in cities under the Environment Act 2021. This goes some way to preventing homeowners and businesses releasing smoke from a chimney. However, there are exemptions for particular stoves and fuels which still mean dangerous particulates can be released into the atmosphere.
“We need an urgent review into the impacts of smoke from chimneys on public health in high-density housing areas, with a view to putting an end to future sales of log burners and fuels if they are shown to have an unacceptable detrimental impact.”
The environment charity ClientEarth, which has won pollution cases against the government, has said the burners need to be phased out. Andrea Lee, from the charity, said: “Pollution from wood-burning is a growing source of fine particulate matter pollution in some areas, which is a serious threat to people’s health.”
The Liberal Democrats have called for more powers for local councils to stop the use of polluting burners. A spokesperson said they were disappointed that it had taken so long for the ban on house coal and wet wood to come through.
“The new eco-design has reduced air pollution from wood burners but more needs to be done including encouraging households to replace older wood burners with the new design. We believe local authorities should have more powers to tackle air pollution in their areas,” the spokesperson said.
Under the 2021 Environment Act, councils have powers to issue on-the-spot civil penalties of up to £300. The government’s plans to encourage councils to take action mean that criminal prosecutions could be pursued for the most persistent offenders, resulting in a fine of up to £5,000 plus a further £2,500 for each day a breach continues afterwards.
However, English councils have issued only 17 fines over six years, despite more than 18,000 complaints, as it is difficult and expensive to prove guilt and then take people to court. Few councils have the resources to vigorously pursue this specific issue.
There will also be tighter regulation of new wood burners, which in designated “smoke control areas” will be allowed to produce no more than 3g of smoke per hour, instead of 5g at present.
Sarah MacFadyen, the head of Policy at Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation, said: “We know that burning wood and coal releases fine particulate matter – the most worrying form of air pollution for human health – which can cause people with a lung condition such as asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to have a potentially life-threatening attack or flare-up.
“It’s therefore important to consider less polluting fuel options to heat your home or cook with, especially if coal or wood is not your primary fuel source.”
www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/02/calls-grow-for-urgent-review-of-damage-done-by-wood-burning-stoves
Better for the environment not to have any firepits or firebowls in the garden. If it gets cool when sitting outside put a coat on or go inside.
choughdancer
I love gardening and watch quite a few gardening programmes on TV. On every single make-over one I've seen recently they install a fire-pit or fire-bowl. Are they non-polluting somehow?
We've non polluting gas fire pits & pole heaters in the garden.
I love gardening and watch quite a few gardening programmes on TV. On every single make-over one I've seen recently they install a fire-pit or fire-bowl. Are they non-polluting somehow?
The instructions that came with my woodburner were very clear about not burning any treated wood on it. I have to confess that I cut up and split old fence rails fir kindling, but I think they've been treated with a preservative rather than an insecticide. Apart from that I only use wood 'straight from the tree', so to speak.
MaizieD
In a new twist yesterday the Guardian reported that the burning of builders' waste wood is on the increase and it is releasing arsenic into the atmosphere. Wood for building is treated to avoid insect infestation.
So, although it might be perfectly dry wood it still shouldn't be used on fires or in wood burning stoves.
www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/09/arsenic-london-air-burning-waste-wood
I believe I've read that before. Builders wood is hard burning.
In a new twist yesterday the Guardian reported that the burning of builders' waste wood is on the increase and it is releasing arsenic into the atmosphere. Wood for building is treated to avoid insect infestation.
So, although it might be perfectly dry wood it still shouldn't be used on fires or in wood burning stoves.
www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/feb/09/arsenic-london-air-burning-waste-wood
M0nica, I thought these new regulations applied to fires as well as stoves
I believe that is what I said.
We wouldn't have a WBS, not a choice for our home.
We've been told to watch for changes to FP rules paralleling WBS rules. We've our chimneys swept on schedule, use correct free dry wood.
Norah I thought these new regulations applied to fires as well as stoves, it is just that very few people have open fires these days.
I think if the emissions coming from your chimney, if you live in a smoke abatement area, exceed the statutory maximum you will be fined, regardless of the source.
One of the papers today said that open fires are many times more polluting than stoves, regardless of the fuel used.
I am asthmatic and our woodburner (which we use most days because it is far cheaper than gas CH) causes me no problems. Ditto, our gas hob. The general attack on woodburners takes no account of our use of very dry wood and even drier sawdust logs. Woodburners are ubiquitous in France and I see no sign of their being attacked there. I think the attack in the UK is a Tory diversion from getting the cost of energy down and forcing us all to buy a heat pump (which may work well in new houses but are incredibly costly for an old house like ours: we were quoted nearly £30,000 to one plus new radiators and house insulation).
I’m in a very rural location with only one neighbour. We never need to buy wood, we both have old trees and I forage wood all year. And we know that wood needs to be properly stacked and seasoned. The wood I’m using this winter was cut in 2015 and stacked in my shed in 2018. It’s a world apart from those awful sopping wet nets of logs that petrol stations used to sell.
“Ali23 I give a reference, further up this page to the government map that shows all those areas that are affected by snoke abatement orders”
Thanks, but I already know that I’m in a smoke abatement area. I needed to know if I could still burn wood in my woodburner. ( ie is it exempt) Which the list tells me I can.
At any rate, free heat is good heat, to our view. Firplaces roaring as I type. We prefer to keep watching out to the rules.
M0nica This is to do with wood burning stoves, not open fires
I realize some people have modern stoves instead of fireplaces. We have stoves in the work buildings, I understand. However, we were told to watch for changes to FP rules paralleling WBS rules. We do get our old brick chimneys swept on a schedule, use the correct wood (albeit free).
Free heating apart from sweeping and inspections.
Norah This is to do with wood burning stoves, not open fires and when you have a stove installed, the installer will put a new flue up the existing chimney, so that the age of the chimneys does not matter. Our chimneys are all several hundred years old, although all but one is blocked off. When our stove was installed we had a new flue liner as well. It is checked every year when the chimney is swept and if it needed replacing our sweep would let us know.
Ali23 I give a reference, further up this page to the government map that shows all those areas that are affected by snoke abatement orders
It was terraced once, not twice😸
Sarah1954 Indeed, I remember at the age of 19 being perfectly healthy but I was affected by the calla gas heater we got to heat the damp, cold bedrooms in a rented terrace terraced house. My eyes would stream😭.
smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk/appliances.php
I used this link to find out if my appliance is allowed to burn wood.
Hope it is helpful.
Solid fuel stoves are not banned and there are no plans to do so. However all new ones must meet recent regulations about the proportion of particulates they emit and anyone using a stove in a smoke control area that exceeds that rate, from a stove of any age can now be fined.
I suspect what will happen is that we will have a couple of highly publicised fines, to bring to those living in smoke control areas that they could be fined if they were not careful, and then little or nothing will happen. With Council budgets cut and the demands on Councils for social care etc etc . Bringing errant stove owners to court will be well down council's list of priorities.
nanna8 It may just be a ban on building new ones and the existing ones will be allowed.
I'd like to think so as well, nanna8. Our fireplaces are very old. No idea really, but our house is beyond old - the fireplaces as well.
It may just be a ban on building new ones and the existing ones will be allowed. They did that here and no one complained. In the 70 s and 80 s loads of them went into houses. At our old house we had a lovely cast iron pot belly and it used to glow red when it was at full belt but it was so comforting and I would boil water on the top. We had to have a brick surround etc for safety . We had young kids then but none of them ever got burnt, they loved it- we used to call that room ‘the snug’.
People should try to remember that these new regulations only apply in areas governed by Smoke Control Area, legislation
Look at this map uk-air.defra.gov.uk/data/sca/ it will show you how limited are the areas where these fines can be imposed and only if the emissions from a stove exceed the stated amount.
Most of them are in big conurbations, where, I certainly, would not dream of having an open fire or using a solid fuel stove.
Where I live is not governed by any Smoke Abatement Order. I have a modern efficient stove burning wood sourced from reputable suppliers, so I will continue to run my wood burning stove as I do now.
I think a large number of Gransnetters will be very upset if such fines were to be brought in. I don’t have a wood burner, but feel it’s a total abuse of power. People have to have heating.
Chocolatelovinggran
I would be sorry to not use my woodburner.
This source of heat is infinitely renewable, and is independent of Russian gas supplies, or Middle East despots. Now, if only I could make my car run on wood..
Indeed.
Cozy wood fireplaces, outside being only over 10 today.
Lovely car requires regular top offs, unfortunately.
M0nica
*NotAGran55*. Not many, so few people smoke these days. I do not know anyone who smokes and walking round our village, where quite a number of us have wood burning stoves, I cannot remember when I last saw someone smoking. It would be so unusual, it would cause comment.
Lots of people vape now, instead, which is bringing its own pollution problems with all the plastic involved. My neighbour with teenagers tells me that most children at their school don’t smoke but vape instead. 
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