This week I heard an interview with a Professor from UCC on Newstalk regarding the dangers wood burning stoves create while emitting toxic gas into the environment. I found it very irresponsible to scare monger like this without offering evidence of his findings. One thing I got out of the interview was a comparison between stove manufacturers and car manufacturers which I found to be a down right lazy and offensive comment. The alternative he wants is natural gas. This is 2019 and a fossil fuel is being promoted by a top Academic over a natural renewable source of energy. Am I missing something? I think we should start with power stations, container ships and needless trips before we create populist hysteria.

Are wood burning stoves really that unsafe?

I'm going to make a few lazy comparisons. If I shoot somebody, is it (A) the guns fault (B) the bullets fault or (C) my fault for pulling the trigger.

The stove is the gun, the fuel is the bullet and the shooter (me) loads the stove. Strange analogy I know but very similar results if I wanted to scare monger. 

If I load a stove with wet wood and light it on a cold day I'll create smoke, PM emissions (Particular Matter) and a smog that won't rise into the atmosphere. If you inhale that, well that's bad for your health. However using the same stove on the same day lighting dry wood with a moisture content below 20%, well now we have a completely different scenario. It's clear gas that is emitted up into the atmosphere and the PM2.5 emissions have decreased by between 50% and 90%. So we all play our part.

The sensationalist Headlines

February sees Alcohol consumption rise by 800% in Cork City! Good headline, right? It’s probably true but what it didn’t say was that February is RAG week for UCC in Cork.

Most of the risk associated with wood burning relates to open fireplaces and not wood burning stoves. This was proven in London when Mayor Sadiq Khan's comments were taken out of context and all the tabloids ran with sensationalist headlines. Mayor Khan spent £20000 on a campaign afterwards urging people to make the right choice when burning fuel and to switch from an open fire to a new Eco Design ready stove.

The fact of the matter is that new Eco Design Standards which will be law by 2022 create up to 80% less emissions than a standard stove. That is based on thousands of hours of research and development by State bodies, independent laboratories and companies like Boru Stoves throughout the world. Wood is good! Burn it right and our planet will prosper. Did you know that when wood is burned correctly it emits the same carbon that the tree took in over the course of its life. #woodisgood