Wood heater smoke estimated to kill up to 63 in ACT each year, prompting calls for national ban
Wood heater smoke estimated to kill up to 63 in ACT each year, prompting calls for national ban
Researchers call for new wood heaters to be banned from urban areas and for existing ones to be phased out after their study shows their smoke may be killing up to 63 people a year in the ACT alone.
We should probably ban campfires too. And charcoal BBQs. Maybe we should ban smoked bacon too, just in case. /s
This is the best summary I could come up with:
The study published on Monday in the Medical Journal of Australia found there were a similar number of deaths attributed to domestic wood heaters in the ACT each year as they estimated died prematurely in the territory due to the extreme smoke from the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires.
These tiny particles are small enough to enter the bloodstream through the lungs, and long-term exposure can exacerbate respiratory conditions such as asthma and it also leads to a higher risk of heart attacks, strokes and some types of cancer.
Fay Johnston from the Menzies Institute for Medical Research co-authored the study and said it showed policies to address wood heater use were urgently needed.
"Alarmingly, the estimated deaths and costs could in fact be underestimates, if you take into account the potential increased toxicity from PM 2.5 derived from domestic wood heater smoke," he said.
A 2021 government inquiry in Victoria found wood heating was a "significant contributor" to air pollution in built-up areas and made recommendations for reform.
It came after a report by ACT Commissioner for Sustainability and the Environment Sophie Lewis found there was "no safe level of air pollution for human health" and the heaters had no place in the territory’s renewables future.
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