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We are happy to announce two new members of our Board of Advisors: Sarah Mittlefehldt, a Professor at Northern Michigan University and Adam Sherman of the Biomass Energy Resource Center in Vermont. Sarah has a specialty in distributed energy and environmental justice and Adam is a leader in expanding advanced wood pellet and chip heating in the northeast. We thank them for volunteering their expertise and guidance to the Alliance for Green Heat!
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More than a year and a half after the new EPA stove regulations took effect, numerous provisions of the rule are still not being followed by all companies. These are three recent examples.
The US Stove Wonderlux Dual Fuel Heater advertises that it is exempt from EPA rules and burns "wood or coal." In other places, it suggests the "Dual Fuel" label means that it can burn "
both anthracite and bituminous coal." We suspect that many consumers don't read the fine print, and assume "Dual Fuel" means wood and coal, just as it has for this stove for decades.
Update on the Vogelzang Rancher: The Alliance for Green Heat contacted Home Depot and they agreed to remove the claim that the exempt Vogelzang Rancher stove can burn both wood and coal. A staff person at US Stove, who owns Vogelzang, also replied to AGH's calls and emails, saying they would contact other retailers like Walmart who sells the Rancher as a "wood or coal" burning stove. As of today, Walmart has not changed their deceptive advertising.
Update on US Stove 1269E: In our November newsletter, we reported that the single burn rate 1269E was sold with a damper. However, the damper is apparently fixed and cannot be adjusted by consumers. Ads for this stove are very misleading, as the photo shows a flue damper and say the stove comes with a "built in damper." Unfortunately, we suspect many consumers will drill out the holes and make the damper adjustable themselves.
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AGH Projects & Activities
 AGH launched an extensive online wood stove change-out resource center to help consumers and program managers make the most out of change-out funding. It's the most comprehensive list and analysis of change-out programs ever done.
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Focus on NSPS
As the EPA required all boilers to be certified and to meet stricter standards, they have become far cleaner and far more efficient. In 2014, the most efficient boiler was 82%. Today, half of the boilers on the EPA list are above 82% efficiency.
The province of British Columbia adopted the EPAs new wood stove and boiler rule, including the stricter 2020 emission standards. Moreover, outdoor boilers must be set by 40 meters (131 feet) from a property line and old, uncertified outdoor boilers cannot be used after 2026 unless they are 80 meters from the property line.
The NSPS required the testing and reporting of Carbon Monoxide since May 2015. The EPA just added a column in the list of EPA certified stoves and posted CO for 2 pellet stoves:
the Enviro EF2-1 at 7.4 and the England Stove Works
55-SHPCB120 at 16.2 grams/hour.
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Washington Watch
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell says a tax extender package will not come up this year, which means the $300 stove tax credit will expire on Dec. 31, 2016. Next year, it could be revived and made retroactive to Jan. 1, 2017 if business as usual continues under a Trump administration.
It is still far too early to tell how a Trump Administration will impact the wood and pellet heater industry. Legislation from a Republican controlled House and Senate could impact air pollution rules. This article, reminds us that renewable energy policy has been driven by states, not the federal government and that it can continue, if states keep pushing it.
2.48 million U.S. households will use wood as a primary heating fuel during the 2016-'17 winter, up 1.3% compared to the previous winter, according to the U.S. Energy Information Agency. This includes 536,000 households in the Northeast, down 0.9%; 612,000 households in the Midwest, up 1.7%; 601,000 households in the South, up 3.4%; and 731,000 households in the West, up 1%.
An important White House report mentions biomass heating and says generally that "Carbon accounting protocols based on the most up-to-date science can ensure carbon beneficial forms of biomass, or only those sources that result in net reductions of CO2 to the atmosphere, are utilized to support U.S. decarbonization".
Since its inception in 1976, WAP has facilitated energy efficiency improvements in more than 7 million homes.Wood and pellet stoves have been on the sideline but should to be better included in 2017.
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Focus on Innovation
Without raising the price, Enviro redesigned a stove from 58% to 77%. A New York company still advertises it as 85% efficient under a different brand name.
The Austrian company Guntamatic has developed the "Hybrid" pellet heat pump - a combination of a pellet boiler and a heat pump. It combines pellets, ambient heat and electricity. The intelligent management system automatically adjusts the system to the most economical or efficient operational mode. (Link is in German.)
A Swiss company has developed a micro ESP - an electrostatic precipitator
that removes fine particles using an induced electrostatic charge
. Adam Sherman of BERC heard that the company quoted a price of $1,960 to have one installed in Vermont. These are even more promising now for restaurants with wood fired pizza ovens.
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The Public Debate
Last month is this column, we carried an article quoting the Sierra Club that burning coal for electricity is only about 35 percent efficient, whereas a modern wood stove is about 75 percent." Gael Ulrich, a professor of thermodynamics, takes issue with that.
This blog, which prompted several mainstream media stories, lists the top 12 metro areas where homes use wood for primary heating the most are: Spokane, Worcester, Syracuse, Albany, Boise, Grand Rapids, Harrisburg, Portland, Springfield, Albuquerque, Rochester and Sacramento. But someone should check the data: how come Fairbanks isn't on the list, or any city in VT, NH or ME?
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International
Canada: A town in Canada is proposing to phase out old wood stoves in 5 years, and require everyone in town to use new EPA certified stoves.
North Korea:
I would like to explain how North Korean residents source their firewood and coal. I'll also cover the differences between city dwellers and rural villagers, and between higher ranking officials and poorer citizens in preparing for the winter.
States
CA
:
Wood smoke can be the product of doing business (burning agricultural waste) or just living (using a fireplace). Either way, it's not good for people's lungs.
CA: River residents can get back up to $6,000 in rebates for getting rid of their old wood burning stoves through a county wood heater replacement program.
CA:
The "no burn" season began in the sprawling San Joaquin valley. In 2014-15, burning was outlawed for 58 days, nearly half the season, but last winter use was banned 36 days and EPA certified stoves had no days they could not be used. A new system becomes permanent this year: people must have certified devices registered and inspected to get a three-year permit.
MA:
The Massachusetts Clean Energy Center is seeking proposals to provide technical and programmatic support for its Clean Heating and Cooling programs.
MD/DC/VA:
The
Best rated chimney sweeps in tri state area are: Phoeniz Chimney, Rooftop Chimney Sweeps, Chimney Crickett Sweeps, Chimney Masters, Bryant Chimney, Dun's Chimney Sweep, Leopolds Chimney Sweep and Sugarloaf Chimeny Sweeps. Make sure you don't hire one with poor ratings.
MT:
Avoid buying secondhand models that aren't EPA-certified. They may save you money in the short-run, but you might end up spending more for health-care costs down the road.
NY:
The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) approved construction of a biomass heater that will serve its headquarters and state and police offices. It will save the state $58,000 per year on heating costs and house a small visitor viewing center.
OH: If you normally purchase firewood for your home heating needs rather than cutting your own, there are several items to look for when purchasing your properly "seasoned" firewood for this burning season.
PA: The Home Performance Coalition is working closely with the Keystone Energy Efficiency Alliance and other PA partners to educate policymakers and stakeholders on many job creating benefits.
PA:
In the Eerie area, one major retailer says firewood prices are stable, and another says pellets have gone down on average from $250 last year to $220 this year.
RI:
A bill proposed in 2012 did not pass, but since then our blog about it has continued to have a lot of readers and provide food for thought for other cities, towns and states. It is an innovative attempt to treat wood heaters in cities and rural areas differently.
SC:
No regulations prevent the burning of trash in a fireplace or woodstove in Columbia, South Carolina.
TN: Fires have burned more than 80,000 acres of forest across the southeast. The fires have led to burn bans in many counties and an air quality alert.
Helping low-income Vermonters heat with wood
VT: The Vermont Sustainable Heating Initiative (VSHI) is a small non-profit based out of northern Vermont that has helped 25 Vermont families on state fuel assistance transition to wood pellet heating.
VT:
Vermont recently announced a statewide change-out program. Residents can receive incentives to replace an uncertified wood stove with a low-emissions certified wood stove or pellet stove.
WA:
Washingtonians take climate change seriously. But gridlock in the other Washington threatens to cripple investments essential to our state's climate policy.
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Upcoming Conferences
Albany, Nov. 30 - Dec. 1, 2016 (sold out)
A meeting to discuss the monitoring and reduction of wood smoke through policy, test method and other strategies. AGH is presenting on its new Stove Change-out Resource Center.
Portland, OR, January 23-24, 2017
Join weatherization professionals working in the residential energy efficiency industry for a cutting edge educational experience.
Kirkland, WA, January 27, 2017
The conference aims to expand its reach, encouraging more participation of Southern partners, international stoves experts, and development specialists with field experience.
Las Vegas, NV, January 30-Feburary 1, 2017
A unique forum designed expressly for the HVACR community.
Cottage Grove, OR, January 31-February 3, 2017
The Clean Stove Upgrade Seminar is intended to improve the IWA Tier scores of brought stoves.
Washington, DC, February 14, 2017
The training will be interactive and - dare we say it - fun, teaching best practices for presenting your message to policymakers.
This is the largest annual pellet heating event in the world.
Atlanta, GA, March 1-4, 2017
HPBExpo attracts thousands of distributors and retailers that live and breathe the indoor-outdoor lifestyle.
Louisville, KY, March 15-18, 2017
The NCSG National Convention features the nation's largest trade show focused on the chimney and hearth industry.
Burlington, VT, April 25 - 27, 2017
Speakers, panel discussion, tours, the expo and more make this the premier thermal biomass event for industry, government, researchers and non-profit stakeholders.
Minneapolis, MN, April 10-12, 2017
This dynamic event unites industry professionals from all sectors of the world's interconnected biomass utilization industries.
Save the Date: National Firewood Workshop
Statesville, NC, April 27, 2017
The National Firewood Workshop will be held in Statesville next year. AGH presents on firewood policies at this annual conference.
University Park, PA, September 12-14, 2017
Hosted by the PA Biomass Energy Association.
Denver, CO, October 5-15, 2017
Fourteen college teams will compete in the DOE competition.
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