Canberra to phase out wood heaters over air pollution concerns

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The ACT government’s plan to phase out wood heaters by 2045 has been met with frustration from retailers who say they've been left in dark, as well as a mixture of support and anger from Canberrans.

Transcript

00:00 For 43 years John Schmitzer has been helping to keep Camberrans warm with wood heaters

00:09 accounting for 40% of his business.

00:11 It's nice to see a customer happy when they've got a warm home, especially with a wood heater.

00:16 Today he found out that won't be an option two decades from now.

00:21 The news wasn't surprising but the lack of detail from the government about how it plans

00:27 to phase wood heaters out was.

00:29 As retailers this is our bread and butter, we need to know what they're planning to do.

00:35 The reason the government wants them gone is clear.

00:39 So the evidence suggests that there's really no safe level of exposure to wood heater smoke.

00:45 But the minister concedes there are more questions than answers about how it will happen.

00:51 We are open to what is the best approach to this and even looking at things like timing,

00:56 that's why it's important that we do the policy work.

00:59 Support for low income households to transition to electric heat is one key concern.

01:05 So is compliance with the rules and the penalties for flouting them.

01:09 What's confirmed is that rural households will be exempt and the ban won't include

01:15 outdoor fire pits or meat smokers.

01:19 About time, only wish it was happening in 2025.

01:23 No gas and no wood but electricity prices soar, how will you address the price pressures?

01:29 I think this is the right move, sometimes we have to put other people's health and

01:32 well-being first.

01:34 What a joke.

01:35 As for John, heating homes is all he knows.

01:39 What am I going to do, open a restaurant?

01:40 Am I going to sell cars?

01:43 I don't know, what does she want me to do?

01:45 Luckily for him, retirement is likely to come first.

01:49 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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