According to GEG probably worthy of funding
The Federal Environment Agency sounds the alarm because of wood heating
6/30/2023 at 8:46 am
According to the will of the FDP, the heating law should be “open to technology”. This includes the fact that when modernizing the heating systems, those that run on wood and pellets can also be installed. The Federal Environment Agency is strictly against it: Burning wood for heat is harmful to the environment and unhealthy.
The Federal Environment Agency (UBA) is highly critical of the regulations for wood heating in the controversial heating law. Politicians should limit the use of wood as a fuel instead of promoting it, UBA air quality expert Marcel Langner told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung (NOZ). For new buildings in particular, there are “significantly more environmentally friendly, healthier and cheaper alternatives” than wood or pellet heating.
In the original draft for the reform of the building energy law, wood was classified as an environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuels such as oil and gas only under certain conditions. A far-reaching ban on the installation of new pellet heating systems was also planned for new buildings. The Federal Ministry of Economics referred above all to the limited availability of the raw material wood.
However, the FDP in particular is pushing for a “technology-open” approach – wood as a renewable raw material cannot be ruled out – and has so far prevailed with it. According to the current status of the negotiations surrounding the law, the installation of wood heating systems would be largely permitted without restrictions and could also be subsidised.
Langner therefore expects a significant increase in the use of wood for heating and a correspondingly higher level of fine dust pollution. “We expect German particulate matter emissions to increase by at least five percent,” he told NOZ. The climate balance of firewood is also mixed: Although wood heating systems are often considered to be climate-neutral, this only applies if as much wood grows back as is burned.