We bought a wood burner about a year ago. Basically we wanted something better looking than our dated, inefficient gas fire (with fake coal). It was a bit expensive, taking into account lining the chimney and so on, but it's worked out well.
It looks stylish, has a touch of nostalgia about the flames, the fuel is relatively cheap, and it's very cosy. I also think it's helping to reduce our heating bill. This, and the fact that using wood for fuel is carbon neutral, makes it a nice way to reduce our carbon footprint.
Currently, there are 1 million wood burners in the UK with 175,000 being added each year. It's thought that they will account for 10% of the government's carbon reduction target by 2020, cutting our emissions by 2 million tonnes a year.
All good right? So why did the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, want to ban them?
Well, burning wood releases soot/smoke. In environmental terms, these are known as particulates. And particulates from diesel cars, industry, and, apparently, wood burning are responsible for thousands of deaths a year in the UK's urban areas.
The problem is that a lot of people are burning the wrong sort of wood and in inefficient ways.
The government is bringing in legislation to ensure all wood burners are at least 80% efficient which greatly reduces the soot produced, and wood suppliers are providing wood with < 20% moisture (the wetter the wood, the more smoke is produced).
This will greatly reduce the amount of particulates. In addition, wood burner owners need to learn what they can burn safely. We shouldn't burn treated wood and we shouldn't burn anything other than wood and plain paper (as kindling). Anything else would be unhealthy.
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