WHEREAS certain types of wood-burning appliances such as outdoor boilers and wood-burning furnaces that produce harmful smoke and pollutants are not required to meet the Canadian standard for emissions; AND WHEREAS recent events such as the increasing cost of fossil fuels and the availability of bug killed timber for use as fuel in these unapproved units is making their use more attractive for many British Columbians: THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the provincial government amend the Solid Fuel Burning Domestic Appliance Regulation or other regulations to require outdoor boilers and wood-burning furnaces to comply with CANCSA-B415.1 Performance Testing of Solid Fuel Burning Stoves, Inserts and Low Burn Rate Factory Built Fireplaces, being the Canadian Standard for wood stove emissions.
Ministry of Environment Fine particulate matter PM2.5 is widely considered to be the cause of serious respiratory problems. According to the Ministry of Environments Emissions Inventory of Criteria Air Contaminants, residential fuel wood combustion accounts for 15 per cent of PM2.5 emissions in British Columbia. To reduce the health and environmental impact of these emissions, the Solid Fuel Burning Domestic Appliance Regulation SFBDAR mandates that retailers must ensure that all solid fuel burning appliances wood stoves, pellet stoves, fire place inserts, factory built fire places, etc. sold after November 1, 1994, meet emission testing and certification guidelines established by the Canadian Standards Association or the US Environmental Protection Agency. Other appliancescookstoves, central heating systems outdoor wood boilers, masonry heaters, and site built fire placesare currently exempt from the regulation. There are several limitations that require SFBDAR to be updated: Limited scope: The exemption for central heating systems includes outdoor wood boilers, which are a significant source of PM2.5. In addition, the regulation only focuses on appliances that use biomass fuels, which exempts coal burning appliances. Limited restrictions: The regulation only restricts B.C. retailers from selling uncertified appliances, but does not prevent someone from purchasing an uncertified wood stove in Alberta and using this appliance in B.C. Limited provisions: The regulation does not include fuel requirements, opacity limits, nuisance provisions, or other strategies to limit emissions from solid fuel burning appliances. As stated in the BC Air Action Plan, the Ministry is committed to strengthening the Solid Fuel Burning Domestic Appliance Regulation. Work is currently underway, and it is anticipated the new regulation will be reviewed in 2008-2009, expanding its scope to include a wider range of appliances. The Ministry is aware of local air quality concerns caused by the use of outdoor wood boilers, and were exploring a variety of options to address this, including introducing new regulatory measures, improving compliance with existing legislation, and raising public awareness about the emissions produced by these appliances, especially when improper fuels are used.