Using Parkwood pellet fires can reduce health risks caused by pollution

The front page of NZ Herald of July 13, 2007 cites a four-year study which found that air pollution claims nearly 1100 lives in New Zealand each year, with one in 20 people dying earlier than they would have. The study, conducted by more than 20 leading science and health experts in New Zealand and Australia, cites open fireplaces in homes and dirty fumes from vehicle exhausts and factories for the toll. And according to Crown Research Institute Scion, if all the houses in Rotorua, cited in the NZ Herald report as having very little chance of meeting Ministry of Environment standards, switched to using pellet fires, the levels of particulate emission would be reduced by 92%!

Parkwood fires have emission levels which are up to 50 times less than those of traditional wood burners, and can therefore reduce the risks associated with health problems related to pollution.