June 15, 2011

Environment Canterbury is currently conducting street-based surveys of the kinds of heating in use in Timaru and Ashburton, to help in the development of an effective approach to improving winter air quality.

The surveys are being carried out on cold weekday evenings between 6 and 9pm from June through July and August. Researchers do not need to enter private property or ask questions of householders. The Police have been informed of the timing and purpose of the surveys.

A remote-sensing (long distance) thermometer is used from the public footpath to see whether heating is in use at that time. The thermometer cannot "see" through walls, but allows the survey team to tell if a chimney is in use.

Ken Taylor, Director Investigations and Monitoring said that the streets to be surveyed are selected at random and the results are anonymous, so people do not need to worry about how the information will be used.

“All researchers will carry identification that they can produce on request but because of restrictions on the time available for the survey, people who want more information should phone Environment Canterbury customer services on 0800 32 4636. “

“We are looking for a big picture of people’s heating habits with no individual follow up for the households surveyed. When combined with other data, the survey will give us a reliable estimate of the number of open fires, woodburners and pellet burners in each town, and how many of these are in use on a typical winter's night,” Mr Taylor said.

Timaru District Council’s Regulation Manager Peter Thompson says that people in Timaru can keep open fires and older burners for use in emergencies that can cause power outages, such as heavy snowfalls.

“This approach should give people confidence that they can install cleaner electrical heating without worrying about power cuts. A simple chimney count can’t therefore tell us how many fires are actually in use, whereas this method of surveying will give us an accurate picture of the main sources of our winter air pollution.”

Ashburton District Council’s John McKenzie also supports the survey.

“We monitor the number of wood burner installations to gauge progress towards the use of cleaner heating in Ashburton. The council is very supportive of improving air quality because of the health benefits for our community. This survey will give a more accurate picture of how many more clean heating installations are still required.”

ENDS

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