Council launches dive into local solid fuel burning practices

West Northamptonshire Council are inviting users of solid fuel burning stoves to take part in research, aiming to increase the council’s knowledge of domestic fuel burning in the area.

Cllr Matt Golby, WNC’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Adult Care, Public Health and Regulatory Services said: ‘We know that people use solid fuel burners for a range of reasons, including their location and access to sources of heat and for financial reasons. But we also know that locally there just isn’t enough information on this and more research is needed to help us understand their potential impacts on health and air quality.’

The DEFRA-funded research will investigate the use of all fuel types: coffee logs, wood, briquettes and coal. The anonymous, online survey aims to better understand people’s domestic burning practices. Specifically, it aims to help the council:

• Better understand why, how and when people burn solid fuels at home.
• Better understand the community’s knowledge and awareness about the health and environmental impact of burning solid fuels at home.
• Better understand the community’s knowledge about how to operate a solid fuel burner to save money, reduce emission and improve health.
• Measure local indoor and outdoor air quality where solid fuel burning is taking place so we can better understand its impact locally.

The Council is also looking for volunteers who use solid fuel burners to have an air quality monitor installed within their home to monitor PM  levels and gather air quality data over the next two burning seasons, with monitoring starting this month and finishing 30th April 2025 for this season. The second monitoring season will begin in Autumn 2025 and finish in 30th April 2026.

The survey itself will close on Friday, 31 January.

Cllr Golby added: ‘This survey isn’t about telling people what they should and shouldn’t be doing to heat their homes, it’s about finding out first-hand from residents about their current use of solid fuels and how this fits in with their wider lifestyles so we have a much greater insight on these issues locally which will in turn help residents to make more informed decisions around how they heat their homes.

‘We would encourage anyone who burns solid fuels in an open fire, burner or stove, whether it’s coffee logs, wood, briquettes or coal, to get involved and give their feedback which will really help make a difference as we look into these issues for our communities.’