Environmental impact of woodburning

[Smurnov]

Apologies if there’s already a thread for this. This article raises some interesting questions about the reputation of stoves and wood burning in general. Should I feel guilty for using mine? What are people’s thoughts?

Wood Burning Stoves A Trendy Middle Class Luxury - Says Newspaper

PURPLESWEEP.CO.UK

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You'd have to be living under a rock to not have noticed the flurry of newspaper articles decrying the popularity and use...

 

[Stubby]

1 hour ago, Smurnov said:

Apologies if there’s already a thread for this. This article raises some interesting questions about the reputation of stoves and wood burning in general. Should I feel guilty for using mine? What are people’s thoughts?

Wood Burning Stoves A Trendy Middle Class Luxury - Says Newspaper

PURPLESWEEP.CO.UK

---

You'd have to be living under a rock to not have noticed the flurry of newspaper articles decrying the popularity and use...

 

I don't feel guilty and I don't believe some of the figures quoted . One jumbo jet taking off from Gatwhick probably pollutes more than all the stoves in my village over one winter .

[difflock]

2 hours ago, Smurnov said:

Apologies if there’s already a thread for this. This article raises some interesting questions about the reputation of stoves and wood burning in general. Should I feel guilty for using mine? What are people’s thoughts?

Wood Burning Stoves A Trendy Middle Class Luxury - Says Newspaper

PURPLESWEEP.CO.UK

---

You'd have to be living under a rock to not have noticed the flurry of newspaper articles decrying the popularity and use...

 

Bah Humbug!

We got 3 wood stoves and 30 acres of forestry.

So the science is settled.

[Dan Maynard]

Not sure where you're coming from, this article is written by a chimney sweep suggesting that people should maintain and use stoves properly to minimise emissions. 

 

Totally agree, people burning wet rubbish badly make loads of smoke and particulate emissions. They shouldn't do that. Open fires are also terrible. New generation woodburners are just fine.

[sime42]

4 hours ago, Smurnov said:

Apologies if there’s already a thread for this. This article raises some interesting questions about the reputation of stoves and wood burning in general. Should I feel guilty for using mine? What are people’s thoughts?

Wood Burning Stoves A Trendy Middle Class Luxury - Says Newspaper

PURPLESWEEP.CO.UK

---

You'd have to be living under a rock to not have noticed the flurry of newspaper articles decrying the popularity and use...

 

 

I don't feel guilty about using our wood burner, there's far worse offenders around.

All the middle class(?) drivers of the completely unnecessary SUVs parked up idling outside schools on the other hand .........

[Elliott.F]

It’s not the stoves and fuel that are the problem, it’s the users that don’t understand the fuel, stove system or proper fire management that is, hence the need for the government to step in and basically force everyone to buy kiln dried wood, for example. 
Wood is a renewable fuel that captures carbon, but the combination of inefficient stoves, dirty chimneys, unseasoned wood and people not understanding how to keep a good fire going with plenty of oxygen is where the problems happen. 
Get those 4 things right and you’ve got yourself a sustainable heat source. 

[openspaceman]

5 minutes ago, Elliott.F said:

Get those 4 things right and you’ve got yourself a sustainable heat source. 

It remains sustainable even if those things are not right.

 

The issue about domestic wood burning is one of people's heath. With particulates being identified as a problem to lungs, and 70% of them in the implicated PM2.5 class coming from some form of combustion, those from woodburning were bound to come to the fore as coal burning dwindled, stubble burning was banned, garden bonfires deprecated and engines fitted with DPFs, addblue and catalysts.

[GarethM]

The real question is what alternative do they suggest ?.

 

Everything has an impact both good and bad, if the human race died out tomorrow nature would take over and starve itself to death from lack of co2.

[Muddy42]

I don't feel guilty at all about lighting stoves.  Yes the wood is sustainable - its from windblown trees or forestry that is replanted.  Transporting it a few miles and processing it requires some diesel but less than transporting other fuels.

[Elliott.F]

1 hour ago, openspaceman said:

It remains sustainable even if those things are not right.

 

The issue about domestic wood burning is one of people's heath. With particulates being identified as a problem to lungs, and 70% of them in the implicated PM2.5 class coming from some form of combustion, those from woodburning were bound to come to the fore as coal burning dwindled, stubble burning was banned, garden bonfires deprecated and engines fitted with DPFs, addblue and catalysts.

So a wood stove running at say 50% efficiency because of unseasoned wood, poor airflow, etc is still sustainable?
 

As for particulates, are they not also worse if the stove system is poorly

managed and the wood unseasoned?