Rule Changes Could Increase Cost Of Buying Wood Stove
BOSTON (CBS) - A wood stove can be a wonderful way to stay warm during a long, cold winter. But if you're one of the many New Englanders who plan on using wood for all or part of your home heating, your future costs may be taking a sharp upward turn.
The EPA wants to dramatically tighten emission standards for new wood stoves starting next year. "This pollution occurs where the public's exposure is greatest, at the homes and the neighborhoods where people live and where kids play," says Lisa Rector, an air quality activist.
The plan drew anxious testimony from the wood-burning industry at a Downtown Boston hearing Wednesday. The EPA estimates the cost to business at less than $16 million nationally, a small price to pay for cleaner air, they say.
"The value of those health benefits outweighs the cost by more than $100 for every dollar spent to implement," said Alison Davis of the EPA.
At Black Magic Stove and Fireplace in Cambridge, the new rules are welcome, with little impact expected.
"We sold more electric fireplaces last year than we did wood, so the market is totally different inside (Route) 128," said Bill Bornheimer, a sales manager at Black Magic.
"If you're in propane country, which is a very expensive gas, wood burning makes sense, or pellet," said Black Magic owner Perry Gignoux.
A Vermont wood stove maker says complying with the new rules could cost him alone at least $8 million.
"There's an awful lot of detail in their proposed standards that doesn't make sense," David Kuhfahl of Hearthstone Quality Home Heating Products.
The proposed rules changes could add hundreds of dollars to the cost of buying a wood stove in the future. Wednesday's hearing was the only one, but the EPA is accepting written comments for several weeks to come. Visit EPA.gov to comment.
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