“Let nuisance caused by wood burning go up in smoke”, is the motto of the motion. Because more and more residents are struggling with this problem, according to GroenLinks. “There is nuisance due to smoke, stench and particulate matter. Assen signed the Clean Air Agreement last year, and must therefore give practical shape to it,” says party chairman Hans Marskamp.
Not a ban but prevention
The party is not looking for a solution in a ban on wood burning, but in preventive measures and information to prevent as much nuisance from wood burning as possible. The party wants a two-year pilot in Assen, in which the municipality provides a scrapping premium for old wood stoves that cause a lot of emissions, and there must be a subsidy for the purchase of a catalytic converter. Assen must also offer free wood burning workshops, so that people know how to burn wood without nuisance.
Also demolition premium fireplace?
“What kind of stoves fall under this, to be eligible for such a scrapping premium”, VVD party leader Martin Rasker wanted to know. “Because I still have a few old ones, which I can collect money for?” The SP wanted to know whether a fireplace also falls under the demolition scheme, because, like wood stoves, it also produces a lot of smoke and fine dust emissions, the party believes. “If you demolish it and put in a wood-burning stove that meets the requirements, that would also be possible,” says Hans Marskamp of GroenLinks.
In the end, the GroenLinks wood burning motion received support from ChristenUnie, PvdA, D66 and 50PLUS, so that the two-year pilot will be carried out with 19 votes in favor and 14 against. Marskamp is pleased that real action is now being taken in Assen to reduce the emissions of hazardous substances from wood burning.
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