THE CLEAN AIR ACT 1993
AND SMOKE CONTROL AREAS
Under the Clean Air Act local authorities may
declare the whole or part of the district of the
authority to be a Smoke Control Area.
It is an offence to emit smoke from a chimney
of a building, from a furnace or from any
fixed boiler if located in a designated Smoke
Control Area. It is also an offence to acquire
an ‘unauthorised fuel’ for use within a Smoke
Control Area unless it is used in an ‘exempt’
appliance (‘exempted’ from the controls which
generally apply in the Smoke Control Area).
The Secretary of State for Environment,
Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has powers
under the Act to authorise smokeless fuels or
exempt appliances for use in Smoke Control
Areas in England. In Scotland and Wales this
power rests with Ministers in the devolved
administrations for those countries. Separate
legislation, the Clean Air (Northern Ireland)
Order 1981, applies in Northern Ireland.
Therefore it is a requirement that fuels burnt
or obtained for use in smoke control areas
have been ‘authorised’ in Regulations and
that appliances used to burn solid fuel in
those areas (other than ‘authorised’ fuels)
have been exempted by an Order made and
signed by the Secretary of State or Minister in
the devolved administrations.
Further information on the requirements
of the Clean Air Act can be found at the
following website:
www.smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk.
Your local authority is responsible for
implementing the Clean Air Act 1993
including designation and supervision of
Smoke Control Areas and you can contact
them for details of Clean Air Act requirements.
The R6 and R6-LS stove has a factory-fitted
combustion air control damper designed to
ensure the correct quantity of combustion
air is always delivered to keep smoke to a
minimum and therefore both models have
been recommended by Defra as suitable for
use in Smoke Control Areas when burning
wood logs.
Never Burn Wet Wood
The recent media coverage of air quality
has increased awareness of this important
issue. Wood fuel marked with the ‘Ready to
Burn’ label shows consumers that logs are dry
and ready for use as wood fuel, and will burn
more efficiently than unseasoned, green wood
and will consequently reduce
their impact on the
quality of our air.
The Woodsure
‘Ready to
Burn’
scheme is
supported
by The
Mayor of
London, Defra,
Hetas and the
Stove Industry Alliance, as well as Hi-Flame.
To find out more about the Ready to Burn
scheme and the environmental benefits
and potential cost savings of burning fully
seasoned wood please go to:
www.woodsure.co.uk/firewood-ready-to-burn/
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