From the Muswell Hill Sustainability Group an important article written by Ruth Fitzharris of campaign group Mums for Lungs:
Looks cosy, homely and inviting doesn’t it, but at what cost …?
Although modern eco-stoves do reduce emissions by 90% compared to a traditional open fire – assuming that wood is below 20% moisture content – burning wood at home still produces more pollution than road traffic, according to research from the University of Birmingham.
The cost to our health – and particularly our children’s health – is an overlooked fallout, as local air pollution campaigner Ruth Fitzharris explains …
At this time of year many people make use of wood burning stoves and open fires to heat their living room and create a cosy atmosphere. However, wood burning stoves and fires emit huge amounts of particle pollution (PM2.5), even when wood is being burnt in the most modern ‘Ecodesign’ stoves and when so-called smokeless fuels are burnt.
Burning wood is a major contributor to local air pollution, tripling air pollution inside the burning home and polluting neighbourhoods via the chimney.
Woodsmoke contains known carcinogens such as benzene, formaldehyde, arsenic and mercury, as well as pm 2.5, that lodge in our organs causing long-term health issues. PM2.5 from wood burning has been linked to a range of conditions, including decreased lung development and function, exacerbation of asthma, allergies, COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder) and pulmonary fibrosis and cancer. The evidence on woodsmoke is so conclusive that the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have called for a phase out of wood burners.
However, public awareness of the toxic pollution being emitted by wood fires remains very low, and so many Londoners are burning in their homes for the comfort and aesthetics of this form of additional heating. To find out more here are some sources below:
2. Mums for Lungs information on wood burning and flyers (free to download and use)
3. Doctors + Scientists Against Wood Smoke Pollution website
Want to help or get more information …?
If you would like to help raise awareness of the risks of wood burning locally, please get in touch with Ruth Fitzharris, local resident and air pollution campaigner, ruth.fitzharris@gmail.com
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