Have the definitive regulations regarding firewood?

[Alycidon]

I feel this is a bit like the data regs that came into place in 2018/9 time,  lots of wind beforehand but be sensible and all should quietly go away,    we have no civil servants to enforce anything anyway.    I look after any fly tipping in my village,  digging into it looking for evidence of who produced it, this I then pass to my local Env Health inspector who will prosecute.     But there are only two Env health inspectors in an area over 30 miles from one end to the other and encompassing a big town and over 150 villages.    They have responsibilities for checking food standards in shops and restaurants also so they have more than enough to do without checking how dry anyones logs are,  unless they have a complaint of course.

 

A

[openspaceman]

31 minutes ago, Alycidon said:

  I look after any fly tipping in my village,  digging into it looking for evidence of who produced it, this I then pass to my local Env Health inspector who will prosecute. 

We found there was very little they could do without direct witness evidence of the littering unless items in the waste could be traced back to a commercial undertaking, when chain of custody requirements meant a prosecution could succeed.

 

Anyway apart from the general consensus that the law could be ignored what has been the effect of the legislation on sales so far?

 

Has it succeeded in reducing pollution which it seems is acknowledged to have been overstated for wood?

 

Is less wood being burned?

 

Have many stopped trading in firewood?

[renewablejohn]

15 hours ago, dudders said:

It won't be anything as dramatic as police.  Someone will tell the county council, who will detail an 'officer' to pose as a buyer to see if you're going to sell him some wood.  When you do, you'll get a letter in the post informing you of the fine that you have to pay.  Funny how all the most repressive states the world has ever seen rely on their citizens grassing on each other...

 

Sadly, it's the way this country is going - increasing red tape will gradually throttle the life out UK enterprise until we're all shuffling papers for the state, and importing everything we need from countries like China.  How hypocritical that the state imposes tight controls on UK producers, but is happy to allow imports from countries which don't have half our regulations.  

 

Get a nice job working for DEFRA , the NHS, or any other gov department or agency (HETAS, Woodsure?) and you're made for life.  Sick pay, maternity pay, paid holidays, promotion, car, office, travel, coffee machine, loadsa perks and then a golden handshake and nice fat extra pension when you retire early because of 'stress'.  And don't miss out on the compensation when your line manager says something nasty, or you trip over your own bag and hurt your wrist.  It's a cushy number, but such privilege doesn't deter these people from being on the backs of the rest of us doing real jobs.  Parasites.

 

This latest regulation is nowhere near the end of it.  It'll be bonfires next, then woodburners, and so on until we're not allowed to fart.

 

Sorry to rant, but I've just got in, soaking wet, having unloaded logs in the dark after slithering around in mud all day and I think of all those civil servant types knocking off at 4.30 thinking they've done a day's work.  Wouldn't swap places though!

 

Anyway, I've got my regular buyers lined up and very supportive they are too, when they know the situation.

Total garbage.  The officer wants wood you sell him 2 m3 plus the statuatory letter and you have complied with the law end of story.  Woodsure can go and whistle.

[dudders]

That's fine IF you know he's a council stooge, but how do you know?  He won't be wearing a badge if he's out to nab you.

They got a taxi-driver round here recently - couple of guys asked a driver to take them somewhere and when he dropped them off they told him they were council 'enforcement officers' and booked him.  Took away his licence, so screwed his livelihood.  

This might sound like entrapment, and so be invalid, but it isn't entrapment if it's your intention to sell firewood illegally and the officer just gives you the opportunity to do so.  The moral of the story is to know your customer, and if two strangers turn up asking for wood, insist that they either buy more than 2cu.m. or certify that their bootful is not for domestic use.  

[renewablejohn]

3 minutes ago, dudders said:

That's fine IF you know he's a council stooge, but how do you know?  He won't be wearing a badge if he's out to nab you.

They got a taxi-driver round here recently - couple of guys asked a driver to take them somewhere and when he dropped them off they told him they were council 'enforcement officers' and booked him.  Took away his licence, so screwed his livelihood.  

This might sound like entrapment, and so be invalid, but it isn't entrapment if it's your intention to sell firewood illegally and the officer just gives you the opportunity to do so.  The moral of the story is to know your customer, and if two strangers turn up asking for wood, insist that they either buy more than 2cu.m. or certify that their bootful is not for domestic use.  

No just dont sell less than 2m3 at a time then it does not matter whether you know he is or is not a stooge. Simples. Having told my customers the minimum sale amount has gone up from 1.2m3 (1 IBC) to 2.4m3 (2 IBC) as yet I have not lost a customer.  Was never in the game of messing about with builders bags as I am to old for lugging logs about.

[trigger_andy]

No just dont sell less than 2m3 at a time then it does not matter whether you know he is or is not a stooge. Simples. Having told my customers the minimum sale amount has gone up from 1.2m3 (1 IBC) to 2.4m3 (2 IBC) as yet I have not lost a customer.  Was never in the game of messing about with builders bags as I am to old for lugging logs about.

How do you sell an IBC’s worth then? They collect and you tip into their trailer or you deliver and tip
1-2 IBC’s worth?

[renewablejohn]

5 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

 

How do you sell an IBC’s worth then? They collect and you tip into their trailer or you deliver and tip
1-2 IBC’s worth?

All my logs are processed into IBC containers and solar kiln dried in IBC containers. Then delivered direct to customer with tractor forks front and back direct into their garage to keep dry. If no garage then I can supply IBC weather proof kit for outside storage. IBC's on exchange basis with deposit taken on first delivery.

[trigger_andy]

26 minutes ago, renewablejohn said:

All my logs are processed into IBC containers and solar kiln dried in IBC containers. Then delivered direct to customer with tractor forks front and back direct into their garage to keep dry. If no garage then I can supply IBC weather proof kit for outside storage. IBC's on exchange basis with deposit taken on first delivery.

Clever. I like it. 
 

I’ve always used vented bags for my own use but have started with IBC’s. 
 

 

Edited March 17, 2022 by trigger_andy

[renewablejohn]

58 minutes ago, trigger_andy said:

Clever. I like it. 
 

I’ve always used vented bags for my own use but have started with IBC’s. 
 

 

You will find they dry a lot quicker with a hat on. You will need to have a word with Woodworks in respect of a suitable hat,

[trigger_andy]

8 minutes ago, renewablejohn said:

You will find they dry a lot quicker with a hat on. You will need to have a word with Woodworks in respect of a suitable hat,

That was just a trial run with the new processor. I’ve seen pics with folk making a hat with half the IBC tub.