Are you fed up with Sheffield's neighbourhoods stinking of smoke all winter?

Did you know that emitting smoke from a chimney is illegal in most of Sheffield?

All legal wood burning stoves are designed to be smokeless but many people don't use them properly!

Smoke seriously impacts our health and quality of life

Unfortunately Sheffield City Council are failing to adequately enforce our smoke control area. The council can (and should!) be fining people up to £300 for emitting smoke. As far as we are aware Sheffield City Council has never used this power. They are leaving us to suffer the health impacts and stench of illegal burning.

The relevant legislation is the Clean Air Act 1993 schedule 1A which makes emitting smoke from a chimney an offence. The smoke control area covers nearly all of Sheffield apart from the more rural areas to the north west. You can see the full coverage map on the DEFRA website

The government published full guidance on how councils should enforce the clean air act a few years ago to try to encourage councils to enforce it and protect public health. That's a simple process of giving people one warning then starting to issue fines to offenders:
Smoke control area enforcement by local authorities
Other councils are making a real impact by properly enforcing the rules. Sheffield should be doing the same!

What can you do to help?

We need as many people as possible reporting offenders to the council and raising the issue with our councillors.

Smoke reports are quick and easy to submit to the council here:
https://www.sheffield.gov.uk/pollution-nuisance/smoke-nuisance
Please highlight that you are reporting a breach of Section 1A of the clean air act in your report.

We have tried to raise the issue with our councillors, but so far they're not interested. We need enough people making noise for them to listen. You can find your local councillors contact details and some template emails you could use here:
Find your councillors | Template Emails

If you do submit reports it would be great to hear from you. Depending where you are we may be able to check the addresses causing problems for you and add our own reports.

Aren't wood burners legal to use?

Wood burners are legal to use, but in a smoke control area must be used correctly so that they don't produce smoke. All wood burners which are legal to use in a smoke control area will have been approved as being able to achieve a 'clean burn' by Ecodesign standards. This means they can hit a high enough temperature to fully vaporise any smoke emissions resulting in practically no smoke from the chimney. That's a temperature of around 700°C internally which cracks the sooty carbon and eliminates visible smoke.

It is still expected that there will still be some light white smoke whilst warming up. That should last no more than 15 minutes. If the smoke isn't clearly white then it's most likely dark smoke which is a full criminal offence to emit.

Can wood be burnt in an open fireplace?

No! Only smokeless fuels such as high quality coal and engineered smokeless fuel can be burnt in an open fire

How dangerous is wood smoke?

The science on the harm from smoke is clear. The clean air act was introduced in 1993 due to the health impacts being clear over 30 years ago. Wood smoke has been shown to cause and contribute to:

• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Lung disease
• Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
• Reduced lung function
• Cognitive decline
• Neurodevelopmental issues and behavioral problems in children
• Preterm birth
• High blood pressure
• Diabetes
• Atherosclerosis
• Many cancers
• Alzheimers / Dementia

The best studied issue is the small sooty particulate emissions called PM2.5 which get deep into the lungs. Based on current research every 1µg/m³ increase in average exposure to PM2.5 could be taking about 20-40 days of healthy life from you. If you live near a house frequently emitting smoke it could be taking hundreds of days of healthy life from you! For comparison readings are typically:

The world health organisation is targeting 5µg/m³ as ideal, so the Sheffield average is already over that! Solid fuel burning has been estimated as contributing as much, if not more, PM2.5 than all vehicle traffic in the UK.

The Mums for Lungs campaign has some more great information if you want to read more:
Mums for Lungs

How can a clean burn be achieved?

A clean burn will only be achieved by using the right wood in a properly maintained burner.

• 
  Only use wood certified with the 'ready to burn' logo. This means its suitable for use in a smoke control area. Your ready to burn wood must still be stored in a dry environment with good airflow to prevent it degrading.
• Waste wood such as pallets should NEVER be burnt as they are frequently chemically treated which can have an even more serious impact on health.
• Ensure proper airflow. Air vents typically need to be fully open to feed the fire. Do not be tempted to close them to burn for longer.
• If you burn regularly your chimney needs to be swept 2 or 3 times a year to maintain high airflow.
• Avoid over or underfuelling. Both can limit the temperature. Refer to the manual for your burner.

For more information we recommend following the guide at the BurnRight website:
How to Burn Right!

IF YOU SEE SMOKE AFTER 15 MINUTES YOU ARE DEFINITELY DOING SOMETHING WRONG!

Useful Links and Articles

The following links provide more information on wood burning and it's health affects

• Mums for Lungs Wood Burning Campaign
  Lots more information and research on wood burning harm
• Research links air pollution and dementia | Air pollution triggers forms of dementia
  Research indicating that:
  Every 1µg/m³ soot increases dementia risk by 13%
  Every 10µg/m³ PM2.5 increases dementia risk by 17%
• Study Links Wood Burning Indoors to Lung Damage
  Wood burner owners' lung function reduces by nearly double the amount of non-users by age 70.
• Wood smoke is the other secondhand smoke
  Wood smoke is likely worse than cigarette smoke.
• Burners linked to 2,500 deaths a year and cost the NHS millions
  Toxic pollution costs the NHS millions
• Every burner has a societal cost of £800 a year
  Burners cost the public hundreds of millions in health and economic impact

Resources

Our Leaflet

Here's our leaflet encouraging people to report offenders in Sheffield which you could print to post around your area. Please ensure you are in the smoke control area as it is only suitable for use there.

StopTheStink Leaflet (Print A4 landscape)

Mums for Lungs Leaflet

Here's a Mums for Lungs leaflet on the harm from wood smoke:

Mums for Lungs Leaflet