Smoke control areas. Do we still need them?

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  • #53753

    Luke_Ashley
    Participant

    From the WCBC website.
    “Smoke Control Areas were originally introduced (under previous legislation) to combat the smogs of the 1950s and 1960s which were blamed for premature deaths of hundreds of people. The popularity of natural gas and the changes in industrial practices have led to a major reduction in smoke concentrations as well as the associated levels of Sulphur Dioxide (SO2) between the 1950s and the present day.”

    With rising energy prices follows an increase in people forced into fuel poverty. Fuel poverty leads to needless deaths and suffering in many cases. I live in a smoke control area but as winter approaches and the fuel bills rise, I worry about how i`m going to keep the family warm.

    Does anyone else think that these out of date restrictions should be lifted? Industry played a major part in coal related smog in the past but those days are long gone and even if half the households in Wrexham used coal to heat their homes, the impact would be no where near that of years gone by. There is plenty of wood lying around and pallets etc, from industry that end up in landfills. Farmers sell logs all year round.
    So why should I be prevented from installing a wood burning stove because of an outdated restriction?

    #57662

    KKOB
    Participant

    I agree with you. And, if the national press are to be believed, there’s going to be a huge glut of firewood once the felling of diseased ash trees begins.

    #57667

    Andy
    Participant

    Where are you prevented from installing a wood burner? Plenty of my neighbours have them but if you have to buy firewood it’s more expensive than gas CH. And wood has to be seasoned at least one year before using.

    #57663

    NJones
    Participant

    Wrexham council have some good on-line map resources to find out if you’re in a smoke free zone: WCBC: Find Your Nearest… MapPortal Map Page

    I’d love to have a log burner- we haven’t even got a fireplace.

    #57658

    wrexview
    Participant

    An excellent map on the Wrexham Council site, looks like Acton is a smoke free zone but Garden Village is not!

    #57668

    Y Ffin
    Participant

    If everyone in towns started converting to log burners and burning coal, then we would soon be back in the smogs of the 1950s, not least because there are nearly 15million more of us living in this country than back then. What you really want is the right for you to pollute, but not other people. If anything the clean air act needs to be strengthened because across most of britain’s urban areas, the air we breathe breaks the standards set by the EU to safeguard people’s health on an ever increasing number of days every year.

    #57669

    Luke_Ashley
    Participant

    A relaxation of rules governing the use of wood-burning stoves, increased awareness of environmental issues and rocketing fuel prices have led to a dramatic increase in demand for wood burning domestic heating systems.

    Over the past 12 months stove suppliers have seen an increase of more than 65 per cent in sales of stoves which meet the latest standards set by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which allows for wood to be burnt in smoke control areas.

    The industry has also benefited from a much wider recognition that installing a wood burning system can significantly reduce a household’s carbon emissions as well as its fuel costs, which have risen dramatically in recent years.

    At the same time wood offers a sustainable fuel source, reducing demand for dwindling supplies of fossil fuels such as gas and oil.

    As a result, sales of all wood burning stoves and boiler stoves are up by more than 15 per cent in the last 12 months, on top of a similar increase the previous year, and we predict this trend will continue – especially as there seems to be no end in sight when it comes to the rising cost of traditional fuels.

    This situation is encouraging manufacturers to continually develop their products to make them even more efficient as well as easier to install and operate.

    In fact it is leading to something of a revolution within the industry as wood burning stoves and boilers cease to become niche products and become a mainstream alternative to oil and gas heating systems.

    Part of my reason for wanting and advocating wood burners, as well as the reasons above, is to reduce the destructive impact of the hydrocarbon extraction industry all around the world.PLUS, Centrica which owns British Gas hopes to make £1.4 billion in profit this year, while at the same time, 1 in 3 households live in fuel poverty in Wales and that number is set to rise.

    It has nothing to do with me wanting the right to pollute Y Ffin.

    #57664

    NJones
    Participant

    Apparently you can install a wood burner in a smoke free zone, but it must be a DEFRA exempt appliance. These are certain burners licensed for use as they don’t pollute.

    #57660

    thewayneinspain
    Participant

    @Luke_Ashley 2488 wrote:

    A relaxation of rules governing the use of wood-burning stoves, increased awareness of environmental issues and rocketing fuel prices have led to a dramatic increase in demand for wood burning domestic heating systems.

    Over the past 12 months stove suppliers have seen an increase of more than 65 per cent in sales of stoves which meet the latest standards set by the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which allows for wood to be burnt in smoke control areas.

    The industry has also benefited from a much wider recognition that installing a wood burning system can significantly reduce a household’s carbon emissions as well as its fuel costs, which have risen dramatically in recent years.

    At the same time wood offers a sustainable fuel source, reducing demand for dwindling supplies of fossil fuels such as gas and oil.

    As a result, sales of all wood burning stoves and boiler stoves are up by more than 15 per cent in the last 12 months, on top of a similar increase the previous year, and we predict this trend will continue – especially as there seems to be no end in sight when it comes to the rising cost of traditional fuels.

    This situation is encouraging manufacturers to continually develop their products to make them even more efficient as well as easier to install and operate.

    In fact it is leading to something of a revolution within the industry as wood burning stoves and boilers cease to become niche products and become a mainstream alternative to oil and gas heating systems.

    Part of my reason for wanting and advocating wood burners, as well as the reasons above, is to reduce the destructive impact of the hydrocarbon extraction industry all around the world.PLUS, Centrica which owns British Gas hopes to make £1.4 billion in profit this year, while at the same time, 1 in 3 households live in fuel poverty in Wales and that number is set to rise.

    It has nothing to do with me wanting the right to pollute Y Ffin.

    Wow that’s well written. Reads almost like a press release. All very interesting, but have you got the stats to back it up?

    e.g.

    how much does a DEFRA exempt woodburner cost?

    how much does wood cost per unit when compared to the same energy equivalent of coal, gas and electric?

    How much does wood cost per year compared to gas, coal & electric when factoring the depreciation of the woodburner say at 20% per annum?

    #57665

    NJones
    Participant

    @thewayneinspain 2648 wrote:

    Wow that’s well written. Reads almost like a press release. All very interesting, but have you got the stats to back it up?

    e.g.

    how much does a DEFRA exempt woodburner cost?

    how much does wood cost per unit when compared to the same energy equivalent of coal, gas and electric?

    How much does wood cost per year compared to gas, coal & electric when factoring the depreciation of the woodburner say at 20% per annum?

    You can find out which appliances are exempt from DEFRA’s site at: Appliances – Defra, UK I don’t think the cost is much more than standard burners but the difference is these have been tested and approved. I believe you also need to ensure your burner is installed to meet certain guidelines and that the local authority recommends that a HETAS registered installer puts the burner in, or at least checks over the installation and issues a HETAS compliance certificate. Find a HETAS installer here: HETAS Find Installer Solid Fuel Biomass Registered Installations
    I can’t comment on comparison of costs, but due to their rising popularity depreciation costs probably aren’t as high as 20%. You can pick up New DEFRA approved wood burners on ebay for around £350.

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