On the first of September 2023, the EPA (Ireland’s Environmental Protection Agency) introduced new legislation for solid fuels.
It’s great for consumers...
You may or may not have heard and you may not even care, in which case, don’t worry - we already have you covered as all our products have been fully tested and added to the official EPA fuel register so you have nothing to worry about.
But if you’re curious, here’s our take on what it all means and how it can impact you.
A disclaimer
Needless to say, we have a vested interest here.
For almost a decade, we’ve been building the Ecofuel business around making fuel sustainable because it's the right thing to do. It’s what energises us to really show up at work every day.
Anyway, the regulations:
The regulations on smoke, sulphur, and moisture
- All fuel suppliers must be registered with the EPA each year. You can see the full list of registered companies here, including the Ecofuel listing.
- Solid fuels must meet limits on smoke emissions
- less than 10 grams per hour for coal and ‘manufactured solid fuels’
- less than 5 grams per hour for ‘part-biomass’ products
- Fuels must have less than 2% sulphur by weight (1% from 2025)
- Wood and biomass fuels must have less than 25% moisture (20% from 2025)
Honestly, we'd be concerned (and embarrassed) if any of our kiln-dried wood approached anything north of 15%. We're usually around 10-13%.
And all our briquettes are all well below 10% moisture.
Where Ecofuel fits
There are a few classifications but all Ecofuel products are essentially 100% biomass.
Our kiln-dried firewood is (clearly) just big chunks of tree. And our briquettes are made from recovered byproduct (sawdust) and some contain additional lignin (a natural polymer in wood).
Right now, our EPA certificate lists briquettes as manufacturered part-biomass, and we’ve requested a correction to 100% biomass.
But that’s a technicality that doesn’t really make any difference. It just means that our briquettes must also meet the sulphur standards, which they naturally do since there’s hardly any sulphur in wood. It’s just an extra test we need to do each year.
Why the regulations are great for customers
We absolutely welcome the new regulations. It means better performing, cleaner fuels and cleaner air as a result.
We’re proud to be leaders in the world of modern, sustainable fuels and we’re glad the world around us is catching up. No longer do we have to rely on our forward thinking customers to adopt change. Now, every supplier must up their game and comply too, which means better fuels and cleaner air for everyone.
