The Scottish New Build Heat Standard (section 6.11) has banned the installation of direct emission appliances in new build properties. This means you can’t fit a gas or oil appliance on the grounds of CO2 emissions, but bizarrely they include low carbon wood burning and biomass appliances.
Guild Scotland director John Stone said: ‘Contrary to the Scottish government’s objective of reducing CO2 emissions, banning wood stoves will have exactly the opposite effect and actually increase CO2 emissions!! The CO2 emissions from wood burning for heat are Biogenic – they don’t even count as climate change CO2’. (see links and supporting documents below).
Even more bizarrely, the consultation (now closed) on the ‘Heat in Buildings Bill’ suggests that sellers or purchasers of a home may be compelled to remove a low carbon wood burning appliance and replace it with a much higher carbon alternative at their own expense!
What can you do about it?
Download the letter template – pdf version or Word version and send it to your local MSP. Many MSP’s are equally baffled as to why an affordable, renewable, sustainable low carbon fuel like wood has been included in the new CO2 reduction measures.
Don’t live in Scotland? You can still help – send a link to this article to your friends and family in Scotland and they can use the letter template.
Using the government’s own information, banning wood burning will actually increase CO2 emissions. Even the most efficient air source heat pumps emit nearly five times as much CO2 per kW of heat as an efficient wood stove. Direct electrical heating appliances produce 19 times as much CO2! (See references below)
Apart from the madness of actually increasing CO2 emissions, this ban causes:
- Decreased fuel security.
- Increased exposure to grid outages.
- Grid constraint problems (the ability to supply electricity against increasing demand).
- Banning removes the rights of an individual to source and use wood fuel to the best financial, environmental and personal advantage.
- It deprives homeowners of the significant mental wellbeing aspects which accompany the operation of an efficient wood fire.
MSP letter template – pdf version or Word version
Biogenic Carbon V’s Fossil Carbon there’s a world of difference!
Key Facts Scotland 25th April ’24 (see carbon facts on page 2)
Key Arguments Scotland May ’24 – why efficient wood burning is part of the CO2 and climate change solution
