A big consultation is taking place on changes which could include types of burners banned from sale and fines for wet wood burning
Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Emma Hardy gave a wood burner update (Image: Parliament TV)
An update has been given on plans which could see major changes to the law on wood burners – including big fines introduced. New wood burners will be subject to stricter limits on smoke emissions and health warning labels under the latest Government plans.
The measures, aimed at cutting harmful emissions and supporting cleaner technologies, are part of a UK-wide consultation launched earlier this year. Ministers have proposed to cut the limit on smoke emissions by 80% – from the rate of five grams per hour under the current standards to one gram per hour.
Now the government has given an update in the Commons as part of questions to Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Asked about air pollution the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Emma Hardy gave an update saying that tighter standards were being introduced for wood burners, and this is a key part of the plan.
She said: “Communities across England will benefit from cleaner air, thanks to our actions to tackle fine particulate pollution, which harms public health and is linked to asthma, lung conditions and heart disease. We will deliver that by modernising industrial permitting, exploring tighter standards for new wood-burning appliances to protect public health, and increasing communication of air-quality information.”
A recent question saw Tory MP Sir James Cleverly asking whether ministers plan to ‘ban the use’ of wood burners within domestic properties. Concerns have been growing after figures showed that wood-burning appliances constitute a significant contributor to air pollution, emitting high concentrations of hazardous fine particulate matter – exceeding contamination from vehicular traffic in some locations.
These pollutants are linked to serious health risks including asthma, cancer, and heart disease, with no established safe level of exposure. Sir James submitted a written Parliamentary enquiry to the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Emma Reynolds, asking: “What plans the Government has to restrict or ban the use of wood-burning stoves in homes.”
Ms Hardy, confirmed that no ‘final decision’ had been made. She told Sir James: “We have launched a public consultation on a package of measures to reduce emissions from domestic burning, including proposals to tighten emission limits for new stoves, improve labelling and strengthen enforcement. We will consider all evidence before final decisions.”
More stringent rules would also require stoves, as well as wood sold for burning, to carry a label outlining the pollution they can produce and the impact on people’s health. The measures apply only to new appliances, although industry data suggests 70% of stoves tested since 2018 already meet the new one gram limit.
Another proposal would see the fine for fuel suppliers selling damp wood – which emits more smoke than dry wood – increase from £300 to £2,000. Domestic burning has been linked to the deaths of thousands of people in the UK annually.
It is a major source of the country’s air pollution, contributing to around a fifth of fine particulate matter – or PM2.5 – which is almost equal to road transport. Air quality minister Emma Hardy said: “Dirty air robs people of their health and costs our NHS millions each year to treat lung conditions and asthma. We are determined to clean up our air.
“By limiting emission levels and introducing new labels as outlined in our consultation, families will be able to make better, healthier choices when heating their homes.”
Around 23% of households in the UK are engaged in some form of burning, with 12% doing so indoors, according to Environment Agency research.
Between 2009 and 2020, PM2.5 emissions from domestic burning rose by 36%, largely driven by the burning of wood.
Currently, solid fuel appliances, such as woodburning stoves, must carry an energy efficiency label but ministers propose for the new label to be displayed alongside it.
The consultation suggests warning labels for stoves would carry messages such as: “Please be aware that this appliance emits air pollution into and around your home which can harm your health”.
For wood sold to be burned, it says labels could read: “Burning in the home leads to air pollution which has a negative impact on the health of you and your family”.
The consultation’s foreword said the Government is also “considering further measures in this space to further reduce these harmful emissions, particularly in the most densely populated places or where there is evidence of the most significant harms”.
Jonathan Blades, head of policy at Asthma + Lung UK, welcomed the consultation’s acknowledgement of the harm caused by domestic burning but said the proposals “fall well short of what is needed to protect the public from dangerously high levels of emissions”.
“If this government is serious about protecting public health, reducing the amount of PM2.5 we breathe must be a priority, and the government should be consulting on bold, ambitious and supportive policy measures to bring down levels from domestic burning,” he said.
Larissa Lockwood, director of policy and campaigns at Global Action Plan, said: “While measures to tighten pollution standards for wood burning stoves and better inform people of the health risks of these products at the point of sale are a good first step, they don’t go far enough.
“A less-polluting stove is like a low-tar cigarette – it’s slightly better for your health, but still significantly worse than not using them in the first place.
“We want to see further action from the government to ensure everyone can access cleaner, greener forms of heating and give local authorities the powers they need to curb harmful emissions for the benefit of their local communities.”