What You Can Do
It is not just up to Council to ensure that PM10 emission levels are reduced. The community can help by doing their part to ensure the air we breathe is as clean as it can be.
Other than insulating homes which reduces the running costs of your home and using cleaner heating systems, you can also make sure if you have a wood burner that you are using it correctly. This means:
- Only burning dry wood, not salt water driftwood or any treated or painted wood.
- Getting wood during summer so it can dry before winter, remembering some wood takes longer to dry than others.
- Burning small, hot fires produces less smoke.
- Adding wood a little at a time – about half full is right.
- Cleaning the chimney and firebox regularly.
- Store wood in a dry area.
- Give the fire air – if you can see smoke, your fire needs more air.
- Choose the right size burner for the size of the house.
- Cut wood to a maximum thickness of 10 to 15 centimetres.
- Don’t bank your fire – smouldering fires make more smoke, which in turn releases more particles.
- Not burning any plywood or particle wood.
- Not burning rubbish, especially materials that can be recycled like plastic or cardboard – wood burners are not incinerators. What we burn affects the air...the air we breathe affects our health...
If you are looking to replace your wood burner with a newer model, don’t forget to check the Ministry for the Environment’s list of approved, NES compliant wood burners here:
http://www.mfe.govt.nz/laws/standards/woodburners/index.html