Wood heating: government plan to halve fine particles emissions

Batirama.com 07/26/20210

Friday, July 23, the Ministry of Ecological Transition published an action plan to reduce by 2030, by 2030, emissions of pollutants in domestic wood heating.

In front of diesel, according to the Ministry of Ecological Transition, heating with domestic wood is the first transmitter of fine particles in France.The figures mentioned are a bit old, but indicates the Ministry of Ecological Transition, in 2018, heating with domestic wood was responsible for 27% of national emissions in PM10, 43% of emissions in PM2.5, as well as more thanHalf of the very thin emissions in PM1.0.

However, fine particles are responsible for 40,000 deaths per year in France according to Public Health France, of which 17,000 could be avoided by respecting the limit values recommended by the World Health Organization.

Three causes of pollution in France

The ministry cites three causes of pollution directly attributable to domestic wood heating.The first is the performance of the device.The ministry recommends using a recent, well -sized device - oversizing leads to non -optimal - and well -maintained operation.

The second is the quality of the fuel.We must use a fuel with a low humidity which allows less polluting and more efficient combustion from an energy point of view.

Third cause highlighted: use practices.The ministry recommends using an ignition from above, avoiding a slowing down pace and ensuring that the supply of comburant air is sufficient.

This third reason is to be detailed.Complete wood combustion requires a low humidity fuel and with a volume of comburant air corresponding to the fuel volume.If we want to regulate the amount of heat produced by a domestic wood heating system, while maintaining good combustion hygiene, keep the right combustible/combustible ratio and therefore vary the two proportionally.

Logging systems do not allow the fuel volume to be regulated.Reducing the heat produced by a log apparatus is obtained by lowering the volume of combustion air, which has the immediate effect of degrading combustion hygiene and increasing the production of unbeansone of all kinds, whose fine particles.

Only systems - stoves or boilers - with pellets make it possible to regulate the quantity of fuel brought to the home at the same time as the volume of comburant air.The introduction of the pellets is managed mechanically, while the modification of the volume of comburant air is obtained by action on the fan - DC - Air supply.The appliance piloting automaton, depending on the information provided by a probe from the combustion chamber, maintains the right combustible/combustible proportions.© Ökofen

Do not abandon wood heating

Within the framework of the Climate and Resilience law, recalls the Ministry of Energy Transition, the Parliament voted for a 50 % drop in programs of fine particles between 2020 and 2030 in the most polluted territories, namely thosecovered by an atmosphere protection plan.

The action plan "Heating with powerful domestic wood" will meet this objective by accelerating the renewal of old stoves and old fireplaces for the benefit of efficient equipment, developing the use of quality fuels and recalling the rightpractices for using devices.

Since wood heating has an ecological interest -it is considered a carbon neutral heating mode, even if this point must be considered with vigilance -, the objective of the plan presented is not to abandon this heating modeBut to make it more efficient.

Wood heating: 6.5 million devices in France

According to Observ’er, the current park is made up of 6.5 million devices.Multi -year Energy Programming (PPE) plans to reach 10 to 11 million heated dwellings with solid biomass by 2028, without increasing the share of national wood energy consumption in order to reach a more energy mixdecarbon and renewable.

To reconcile this objective with respecting WHO recommendations in terms of air quality, we must promote the use of little issuing devices.Almost half of households (47%) who use biomass heating use it as main heating, the rest being shared between the extra use (36%) and approval (17%).Consequently, wood heating represents nearly 70 GWh of thermal production, which represents half of the production in renewable heat in France and 10% of final heat consumption.

If the log remains the most used fuel (86% of the biomass fuels market), the use of pellets, which are more effective for combustion, increased by around 15% per year.Despite the gradual renewal of the heating equipment park, open households and ineffective old equipment, dating from before 2005, still constitute 48% of the equipment park and are responsible for approximately 2/3 of fine particle emissions from theIndividual wood heating.

Open household chimneys responsible for 21 % of total wood heating emissions

Open household chimneys are responsible for 21% of total wood heating emissions, while they constitute only 10% of the equipment park nationwide, or around 500,000 households in 2019. In Ile-deFrance, open households represent 44% of heating emissions with residential wood while wood heating constitutes only 5% of the park.

Given their very low yield, of the order of 15% or even less, and their significant emission levels, open households constitute not only without equivalent energy waste, but also considerable pollution while it isOften acts in approval heating.

In Arve valley, following the observation on the particularly heavy contribution of heating with residential wood to air pollution, identified in the atmosphere protection plan (PPA), the prefect of Haute-Savoie took a decree in 2019 which prohibits the use of open household chimneys from January 1, 2022. It is the only French territory that made a final prohibition decision for the use of open households.However, in PPA areas, all prefects can set up a ban on non -efficient biomass heating.

The verification of this ban remains a barrier to make such an effective measure.

An action plan in five axes for wood heating

The "efficient domestic wood heating" action plan therefore provides for five types of actions.

Explanation of text: Air Bois Funds

The announced measures include several acronyms that cover little -known concepts.Let's start with the Air Bois fund.The Air Bois funds, coordinated by ADEME, has been contributing since 2013 to the objective of reducing pollution resulting from the burning of wood, by implementing aid for individuals in the regions most polluted by theCombustion of biomass and various actions to raise awareness of good practices and mobilization of professionals.

These systems are funded equally by ADEME and the territory (community, department, region, etc.) concerned by this air pollution.Part of this fund is also dedicated to raising awareness and information for users on the practices to be adopted, in particular via Faire networks.

About fifteen territories distributed in 5 regions (Aura, Hauts-de-France, Ile-de-France, Grand Est, PACA) have set up Air Bois funds co-funded by ADEME.The current budget program provides that certain funds continue until 2026, while others, in the Arve valley, for example end from December 31, 2021. The precise amount and the awards of aid areregionalized from one zone region to another.

The aid levels of the Air Bois funds are located in tranches ranging from 600 - € 1,000 (Voironnais country) to € 1,000 - € 2,000 (Metropolis of Grenoble, Grand Annecy, Community of Arve and Salève communes, community of municipalitiesGrésivaudan), often conditioned on household resources.In Ile-de-France, the amount of the aid is by default by € 1,000, but individuals can receive a sponsorship bonus of € 1,000 if they participate in the dissemination of information on their approach and aCensus of good practices to limit polluting emissions.It is enough to add, at the time of the deposit of supporting documents allowing to benefit from the aid, a "sponsorship certificate" signed by the individual applicant and the sponsored person.

The total amount dedicated to the Air Bois funds on a national scale is 46.8 million euros (period 2012-2026), including 21 million euros in ADEME contribution.This represents a target for the total purchase assistance of approximately 36,000 new, domestic high -performance wood heating equipment.

Throughout France, Maprimerenov ’helps finance the purchase of a new device for individuals, with amounts up to 2000 euros for the most modest households.Energy savings certificates (EEC) are also available to households that install domestic heating equipment with efficient wood.This aid is improved in case of scrapping of an old oil or gas boiler: between 500 and 4000 € for a boiler, between 150 and 300 euros for a stove or insert.

Can we go beyond the 7-star green flame label?

Air woods, Maprimerenov ’and EEC are cumulative.The selected devices must reach or exceed the performance thresholds of the 7 -star green flame label.Fine particle emissions from the device should not exceed 40 mg/nm3 if it is supplied with logs and 30 mg/nm3 for wood pellets.

The European directive on eco -design of energy -related products will frame energy efficiency and emission levels (fine particles, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, volatile organic compounds) of independent devices from 1 stJanuary 2022, as she did for the boilers on January 1, 2020. The criteria of the Flame Green label will then be equivalent to the regulations.

The Ministry of Ecological Transition wishes to develop the Green Flame Label beyond 7 stars.

In the green flame database, there are 3068 individual log heating devices whose performance is greater than or equal to the 40 mg/nm3 threshold.The best do not exceed 3 mg/nm3 and 951 independent logs display emissions ≤ 20 mg/nm3, half of the current requirement for the 7 -star level.© Buderus

Regarding individual pellet devices, other than boilers, the green flame database lists 2,256 7 -star green flame models.The best do not exceed 2 mg/nm3, while 1188 devices do not exceed 15 mg/nm3, half of the current green flame requirement for individual wood pellets.

The green flame base contains 488 7 -star boilers, including 380 automatic loading (pellet) and 108 with logs.Since January 1, 2021, the 7 -star green flame criteria for boilers have evolved to be superior to the requirements of the Ecodesign directive which, since January 1, 2020, has set new performance thresholds and introduces the idea of seasonal yield.

New 7 -star green flame criteria for domestic boilers

None of the 7 -stars boilers with pellets, listed in the green flame base, reaches the 30 mg/nm3 ceiling.The best starts at 2 mg/nm3, the worst good are at 29 mg/nm3.250 pellet boilers display values ≤ 15 mg/nm3.© Ökofen

About 108 7 -star log boilers identified in the green flame base, while the ceiling is 40 mg/nm3, the best reach only 6 mg/nm3 and the worst do not exceed 35 mg/nm3.76 log boilers display emissions ≤ 20 mg/nm3.

In short, whatever the category of individual wood heating apparatus, the materials marketed in France today would divide the ceiling of fine particle emissions retained to reach the 7 -star green flame label.

Source: Batirama.com / Pascal Poggi