PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
(21 January 2025)

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of (a) Smoke Control Areas and (b) Ecodesign regulations, in the context of the impact of domestic log burners on air quality.

Asked by:
Jess Brown-Fuller (Liberal Democrat)

Since the introduction of Smoke Control Areas in 1956 emissions from domestic combustion have reduced significantly. However, domestic combustion is a major source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) emissions in the UK, and wood stove ownership is increasing.

Whilst we are not required to carry out an assessment of the effectiveness of Smoke Control Areas or Ecodesign regulation we have commissioned reports in both areas.

Kantar prepared a report on Burning in UK Homes and Gardens for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in 2020. This report included an analysis of burning in Smoke Control Areas, and can be found at Report: Burning in UK homes and gardens (plus a number of annexes) - Defra, UK

Ricardo prepared reports on Emission Factors for Domestic Solid Fuels Project which for Defra in 2024. These include details of emission factors using Ecodesign-compliant stoves compared to other types of stoves. These can be found at WP1 - Report: Emission Factors for Domestic Solid Fuels Project - Work Package 1 Report - Defra, UK and Ricardo report template The final report in this series is due to be published shortly on Air Quality Library - Defra, UK.

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