Wood-burning stoves face new restrictions – but a loophole from Britain’s smog years is fuelling the problem

Wood-burning stoves are booming in the UK, a cosy response to high energy prices and cost of living pressures. But this comes with a hidden cost.

So-called domestic burning is now a leading source of one of the most harmful forms of air pollution, and the UK government’s new environment improvement plan acknowledges the scale of this problem. Yet the tools the UK relies on to control stove emissions were built for a different era – and may not be up to the job.

In the new plan, domestic burning – the use of wood to heat homes – is recognised as a primary contributor to particulate matter pollution, particularly PM2.5.

PM2.5 is considered highly dangerous as the particles are so small – less than 2.5 micrometres across – that the body has difficulty keeping them out. Once inhaled, they penetrate deep into the lungs, pass into the bloodstream and enter nearly every organ, contributing to heart and lung disease. Crucially, experts generally agree that a “safe” level of exposure has yet to be determined.

Although domestic burning features prominently in the new plan, the UK already has one of the world’s longest-standing regimes for controlling stove emissions. The Clean Air Act 1956, introduced after lethal London smogs killed more than 12,000 people in three months, enabled local authorities to create smoke control areas (SCAs) to restrict which appliances and fuels could be used.

Despite some alterations, this system has barely changed in almost 70 years. In fact, SCAs cover very little of England, Wales and Scotland, and enforcement is extremely difficult. Only a fraction of public complaints ever result in a fine.

More importantly, even perfect enforcement would not solve the core problem. SCAs were designed to reduce visible smoke, not invisible PM2.5. Modern “Defra-approved” and “EcoDesign” stoves are exempt because they emit less visible smoke.

But even under ideal operating conditions, they still emit significant levels of PM2.5 – more than 300 times that of a gas boiler. Since 2010, more than 2,500 stove models have been exempted from SCA rules, steadily widening the loophole and gradually weakening the system’s ability to control PM2.5.

This is particularly concerning as wood burning is becoming more popular. The share of UK households using solid fuel increased from 8% in 2018-19 to 11.7% in 2022-23. Installations are also increasing, with the proportion of newly inspected homes containing a stove growing from 7% in 2009 to just over 10% by 2024.

This raises the risk of what researchers call the “dematerialisation fallacy”, where efficiency gains in individual appliances are cancelled out by growing overall use. Labelling appliances as “cleaner” can unintentionally accelerate this trend by giving the impression that modern stoves are environmentally benign.

New air quality targets

The Environment Improvement Plan introduces two different PM2.5 targets. The first aims to cut annual average concentrations by 46% by 2030, while the second seeks a 30% reduction in the amount of particulates people actually breathe, compared with 2018 levels.

This is intended to maximise public health benefits, since the first target could technically be met by cleaning up a small number of hotspots, while leaving many still exposed to harmful pollution.

These stricter air quality standards bring the UK more in line with EU and World Health Organization targets. However, as the UK’s Air Quality Expert Group recently noted, their achievement will require more “overt” intervention in people’s everyday lives. The plan’s success therefore hinges on wider public engagement and effective communication of air quality issues.

Barriers to cleaner air

Unfortunately, air quality remains relatively low on the public agenda and can become embroiled in wider political disagreements – while domestic burning is often deeply valued.

In a 2024 UK government survey of over 600 people who had burned solid fuels at their property in the past 12 months, 61% considered burning to be a “right everyone should enjoy”.

Of indoor burners, 52% considered it a “necessity” – despite most (99% in England) living in homes connected to mains gas or electricity. What’s more, 39% did not consider burning to be a significant source of air pollution, and 53% did not worry about the potential health impacts.

Economic justifications have also become more pronounced. Household energy bills are much higher today than they were just a few years ago, and the increased cost of living has eroded incomes.

In the same survey, 62% of burners cited financial reasons, while almost half (48%) gave aesthetic reasons for burning. Research from 2020 – when energy and living was cheaper – had these motivations reversed, highlighting how changing circumstances can shift burning justifications.

Comparing the cost of wood burning with central heating is not straightforward. Prices vary depending on the type of wood, the efficiency of the stove, how much of the home is heated, and whether fuel is bought in bulk or sourced for free. What is considered costly also differs between households.

However, recent modelling indicates wood burning is generally more expensive than central heating. Only when most wood is obtained at little or no cost does burning become cheaper, with gas and heat pump systems remaining the more cost-efficient choice in most scenarios.

In this context, the environment improvement plan has its work cut out. While it doesn’t explain how it will achieve the new targets, the plan does commit to consulting on new interventions – a much-needed step, given the limitations of the SCA regime.

Much rests on this consultation. The UK is far from alone in grappling with domestic burning, and a wide range of interventions is available beyond the much-needed reform of the SCAs. These include advertising controls, installation restrictions within certain areas, burn bans during high pollution or low wind episodes, public awareness campaigns, educational resources for schools, and wider access to cleaner heating technologies for those without alternatives.

Ultimately, the complexity of the issue means no single intervention will solve the problem. The environment improvement plan holds much potential, but its success will depend on what comes next.

Cutting emissions from domestic burning requires helping people to understand the health risks, challenging the idea that modern stoves are harmless, and providing practical alternatives for those who rely on burning.

If the government is serious about meeting its new air quality targets, it must treat behaviour, information and public engagement seriously as central pillars of its strategy.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: James Heydon, University of Nottingham

James has previously received funding from Welsh Government's Local Air Quality Management Fund. He is a member of the Welsh Government Clean Air Advisory Panel, and Promoting Awareness of Air Quality Delivery Group. James also sits on the Scottish Government's Air Quality Advisory Group.