Wood smoke and health
Switch to a Xaralyn Fireplace
Smoke—even from a wood fire—always contains harmful substances. That means wood smoke, in general, is bad for your health. Exposure occurs through inhalation of this smoke.
Using a wood stove, open fireplace, firepit, or barbecue releases pollutants into the air. This affects both air quality and our health.
Burning wood emits various substances, including fine particulate matter, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and soot.
Wood burning is a major source of fine particulate emissions—even more than road traffic in the Netherlands.
23% of the fine particulate emissions in the Netherlands are caused by wood burning. This means that wood burning has a larger share in the total fine particulate emissions than road traffic.
While our government is rapidly attempting to encourage us to drive electric cars with various subsidies, there was even a subsidy scheme for pellet stoves until recently.
Regarding one of the major contributors to fine particulate emissions, the policy of our government is focused on "providing information." Once serious policies are put in place to address one of the main sources of our fine particulate problem, the burning of wood in wood stoves and fireplaces could come to a halt quickly.
According to the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, the most cost-effective way to tackle air pollution is by reducing diesel vehicles without particle filters and replacing outdated wood stoves and fireplaces.
There are plenty of alternatives to wood stoves and fireplaces. An electric fireplace is extremely user-friendly, adds ambiance, and often includes a heating function. For those who appreciate real flames, a bio-ethanol fireplace offers a clean solution.
Of course, we could wait for government policies and potential subsidies on bio-ethanol fireplaces or electric fireplaces. But why not make the switch voluntarily? After all, our environment concerns us all!
