Media Release: Woodburner plan change endorsed

18 December 2015

Nelson City Council has approved a Woodburner Plan Change and section 32 report, which will be open for public submissions from mid-January 2016.

The proposed plan change allows for an additional 1000 Ultra Low Emission Burners in Airshed B2 (Stoke) and 600 Ultra Low Emission Burners (ULEBs) in Airshed C (The Brook, Nelson East, The Wood and Atawhai).

Mayor Rachel Reese says the proposed plan change uses an “adaptive management approach”, which means that burners could become a permitted activity in Airsheds A (Nelson South and Victory) and B1 (Tahunanui) if there are further improvements to air quality in these areas over the next few years due to behaviour change.

“This plan change is an interim step to provide greater flexibility for the use of woodburners in airsheds where there is currently capacity. It doesn’t address all the issues and these will be looked at as part of a full review of the air provisions through the Nelson Plan programme,” she says.

“This gets us to a starting point. There’s an opportunity for NES compliant burners to be considered through the submission process.”

The plan change will be notified in mid-January with public submissions open for 20 working days. Letters will be sent to all Nelson households advising notification of the plan change. Council also agreed to survey residential landowners without woodburners on whether they would like to install either a new NES woodburner or an ULEB over the next two years.

People who submit will have the opportunity to provide a further submission during a ten day submission period in March. Before the plan change is made operative, there will be a public hearing, notification of Commissioners’ decision and an appeal period.

The aim is to have the new rules in place that would allow woodburners in some airsheds before winter but this will be dependent on whether there are any appeals.

Ends

NOTE TO EDITOR:
• There are four Ultra Low Emission Burners on the market in New Zealand that meet the standard of 0.5g of emissions per kg of fuel burnt (tested through real life emissions testing).
• National Environment Standard woodburners meet 1.5g of emissions per kg of fuel burnt through lab testing.

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