Clean Heat
EECA’s clean heat programme is working towards cleaner air, making homes warmer and drier, achieving better health, and efficient use of energy.
Through this programme inefficient open fires and solid fuel burners are removed from New Zealand homes and replaced with clean, efficient and sufficiently sized heating appliances. The programme currently targets homes of low income householders situated in a critical air shed area. A critical air shed area is an area of high pollution where the National Environmental Standards (NES) for air quality have been exceeded at least five times in the last 12 months. This programme is funded by the Ministry for the Environment.
What is ‘clean heat’?
‘Clean’ heat refers to heating systems that produce very little or no air pollution and are highly efficient to run.
If you are eligible for a clean heat grant you will pay no more than $500 to replace your home’s inefficient heating appliance with one of the following:
- An ENERGY STAR® heat pump
- An authorised wood burner
- An authorised pellet fire
- A 4-Star AGA rated flued gas heater (reticulated or bottled)
Am I eligible?
To be eligible for funding:
- Your home must have been built prior to 1978
- You must be eligible for a community services card. To view the community services card threshold visit the Work and Income website
- Your home must be in a critical airshed
- Your home must currently use a solid fuel heater (e.g. open fire or non-NES compliant wood burner) as the main heat source in the main living area of your house.
The house receiving the clean heat grant must also have insulation fitted at completion of installing the clean heat device. This means that if there is no insulation (or insulation below the required levels) then it must be fitted at the same time as the clean heat device.
Clean heat projects are currently running in the areas listed below. If you meet the above criteria and would like to apply for a grant please contact:
Waimakariri, Timaru and Christchurch
| Environment Canterbury | 0800 324 636 |
Otago (includes Arrowtown, Cromwell, Clyde, Alexandra, Roxburgh, Ranfurly and Naseby)
| Otago Regional Council | 0800 474 082 |
| EnergySmart | 0800 777 674 |
Tokoroa, Rotorua, Taupo, Te Kuiti
| Energy Options | 0800 15 15 65 |
Nelson, Tamsan
| Nelson City Council | (03) 545 8713 |
| EnergySmart | 0800 777 674 |
National Wood Burner Review
In 2004, the Ministry for the Environment introduced national environmental standards for air quality. These regulations include design standards to ensure new wood burners installed in urban areas are clean and efficient. The wood burner design standards will help improve air quality in urban areas of New Zealand.
Following this, in 2005 the Ministry, in partnership with Environment Canterbury and Nelson City Council, undertook a compliance review of wood burners to see how the standard was working in practice. The intent of the National Wood Burner Performance Review is to provide consumers, retailers and installers with confidence that the wood burners being sold and installed are as clean and efficient as claimed. It further serves to demonstrate the Ministry’s commitment to a ‘level playing field’ for New Zealand manufacturers. The performance review was carried out as follows:
- Phase 1 – design verification testing of 35 wood burners during May to July 2006;
- Phase 2 - design verification testing as well as emissions and efficiency testing of 10 wood burners during September – December 2006.
All burners included in the review were randomly selected. The review revealed poor compliance. This is not unexpected given the recent introduction of the national environmental standards for air quality. The Ministry and partner councils have taken action and worked with industry to resolve the identified issues. Given the problems identified, the Ministry strongly recommends councils, retailers and consumers continue to refer only to the authorised list of wood burners. This can be found on the Ministry for the Environment's website.