Media Release
Solid Energy plans progressive withdrawl from coal home heating
3 September 2004
Burning coal and wood in open fires and enclosed household burners contributes to air pollution, particularly in cities like Christchurch, says Solid Energy Chief Executive Officer, Dr Don Elder. This is why Solid Energy, New Zealand's major coal producer, is planning to withdraw from supplying coal for home heating.
Dr Elder says that the company is planning a phased withdrawal from supplying the home heating market. In Christchurch this is likely to be within a year, in line with the draft Canterbury regional air quality plan, which will see the use of open fires banned from the city from 1 January 2006. In Otago and Southland, the company is looking at a longer timeframe, probably up to five years.
Dr Elder says that Solid Energy believes that coal should only be burnt where its impact is minimal and environmentally acceptable.
"This is not a decision that we have made lightly. But we know that coal and wood burnt for home heating on open fires and household burners cause air quality and health problems in a number of New Zealand cities and towns. We also know that many New Zealanders have negative views of coal, based on incorrect perceptions that coal use in New Zealand is largely about home burning and, as a result, air pollution.
"Coal has a very important future in New Zealand but that future is in industrial uses and for electricity generation, not in household use," says Dr Elder.
"Coal burnt in compliant industrial burners by New Zealand industry and for electricity generation at Huntly has very low pollutant emissions. Technologies to deal with emissions of particulates, SO2 and NOx are widely used and available and cleaner technologies are under development internationally which will significantly reduce further the environmental impacts of industrial coal use."
Dr Elder says that in New Zealand a number of regional councils and the Government are in various stages of developing standards and initiatives that will target the unacceptable use of solid fuel on open fires and non-compliant burners. In Christchurch, under the draft Canterbury regional air quality plan, open fires will be banned from 1 January 2006. In Nelson open fires will be banned from 1 July 2008.
Solid Energy firmly supports these proposals to introduce new national air quality standards and planned regional air quality initiatives, says Dr Elder. However we also acknowledge that for the moment some people may not have other forms of home heating.
This has been the main driver for the company's acquisition last year of a biomass business which provides clean burning low emission wood pellet fuel, burnt in specially designed pellet fires, for home heating. Trading as Nature's Flame, the wood pellet fuel produces one-tenth the emissions of other enclosed domestic solid fuel burners and one-hundredth the emissions of open fires, with efficiencies of 90% achieved - four times that of open fires.
In the interim a number of people continue to rely on coal for their home heating. Solid Energy's Ohai Opencast Mine provides one of the highest quality domestic coals available - it produces less smoke and less sulphur than other coals, making it one of the cleanest burning New Zealand coals. As a result, Solid Energy is therefore prepared to continue supplying bagged Ohai coal into the home heating market for up to five years.
New Zealanders need clean, affordable home heating and we are committed to working with the Government, regional councils and others to ensure that people have access to affordable, clean home heating to replace solid fuel burning on open fires and household burners. The future for coal in New Zealand lies in its ability to help meet New Zealand's energy needs through high efficiency, low emissions industrial burning and electricity generation, not in home heating.
For further information contact Vicki Blyth, Communications Director, Solid Energy New Zealand Ltd, Telephone 3 3456 000, fax 03 346 6016, mobile 021 670 250.
