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Adverts claiming that wood-burning stoves are “very low emissions” have been banned by the Advertising Standards Agency for being misleading and not substantiated.
The claims were made on the website of the Stove Industry Association, which represents the makers and sellers of stoves in the UK. Campaigners against air pollution said they were glad the ASA had debunked some “seriously misleading myths”.
The first claim said: “Used in the correct way, a modern wood-burning stove is a very low emission way to heat the main living space in your home.” The second said: “A modern stove and dry wood fuel can significantly lower emissions and improve efficiency compared to an open fire or older stove.”
The ASA ruled both claims were misleading and not substantiated. “The ad must not appear again in the form complained of,” the ASA statement said.
The burning of wood and coal in homes contributes to almost 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, according to analysis published in October. Stopping unnecessary burning would save the NHS more than £54m a year, the experts concluded.
More than 90% of people have other sources of heating and only about 10% of people say they burn at home out of necessity. Many use the stoves and fires for their aesthetic appeal.
“We are really glad the ASA saw through the smoke and debunked some seriously misleading myths around wood-burning stoves: if you care about your health, don’t burn in your home,” said Jemima Hartshorn, the founder of Mums for Lungs. “An open fire, an old or a new stove are all really unhealthy options and have been linked to many illnesses. Now the government needs to wake up and protect our children by phasing out domestic wood burning.”
Larissa Lockwood, the director of policy and campaigns at Global Action Plan, said: “It is very encouraging to see the ASA affirm what we have long known to be the case: wood burners are not a clean or green way to heat your home, and industry narratives to the contrary are misleading. Wood burning is the most polluting way to heat your home.”
“The health impacts are not just felt by the people choosing to burn wood in their homes, but also by their families, neighbours and surrounding communities, who are unintentionally exposed to toxic air,” Lockwood said.
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A spokesperson for the Stove Industry Association (SIA) said: “The SIA is preparing to request an independent review of the ASA ruling. We respect the ASA’s processes and will be submitting our request in accordance with its established procedures. It would be inappropriate for the SIA to comment further until this process has been completed.”
Among the material the SIA submitted to the ASA in response to the complaint was data from the government-backed UK National Atmospheric Emissions Inventory.
The ASA ruling said: “The data showed modern stoves emitted significantly less PM2.5 [particle pollution] than open fireplaces. However, it showed modern stoves emitted more PM2.5 than the older stove types listed … it also showed that other emissions were higher, and in some cases significantly higher, for dry wood burned in a modern stove as opposed to an open domestic fireplace, such as sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, and several other toxins.”
