Best Practice Local Ordinance-Law for Wood Burning Outdoor Furnace - Also Referred to As an Outdoor Boiler

This section and the Sample Best Practice Local Ordinance have been updated as of May 15, 2010 to take into consideration developments in the EPA emission reduction program and to include the Phase 2 emission limit.

Central Boiler supports reasonable and responsible regulations that prevent and/or correct outdoor wood furnace misuse to encourage cleaner burning wood furnaces by implementing the Best Burn Practices. in conjunction with reasonable laws/regulations. Based on experience in other communities that have implemented regulations regarding outdoor wood furnaces, the following requirements should be considered when drafting an ordinance:

Consider developing a permitting process for new installations of outdoor wood furnaces.
An outdoor wood furnace shall be laboratory tested and listed to appropriate safety standards such as UL (Underwriters Laboratories), CAN/CSA (Canada National Standard/Canadian Standards Association), or ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standards or other appropriate safety standards.
Consider having an owner submit a site plan to show where the unit will be located on the property. A site plan should be limited to showing the owner’s property.
Outdoor wood furnaces shall be installed, operated and maintained per the manufacturer’s instructions.
Only natural wood or the manufacturer's listed fuels may be burned in any outdoor wood furnace. Consider that some outdoor furnaces also employ features that allow them to burn natural gas, liquid propane or fuel oil as backup and starters. Burning of any and all other materials is prohibited.
Create a list of items that should never be burned such as: trash, plastics, gasoline, rubber, naphtha, household garbage, materials treated with petroleum products (particle board, railroad ties and pressure treated wood), leaves, paper products and cardboard.
New outdoor wood furnaces should be required to meet reasonable setback and chimney height requirements.
See Sample Best Practice Local Ordinance.
A process for enforcement and appeals should be established.

Regulations should not contain biased statements. Regulations should state fact, not opinion.

Before creating regulations it should considered that EPA is currently revising the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for residential wood heaters to include outdoor wood furnaces and other types of wood heating appliances. According to the EPA, the revised NSPS has a completion date of May 2012.

Several States including Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Maryland have established laws/regulations based upon the testing standards and emissions limits outlined in the EPA emissions reduction programs.

Ordinances similar to this Sample Best Practice Local Ordinance have been implemented in several communities throughout the United States.

For more information about how to establish outdoor furnace regulations, Contact Us at Outdoor Furnace Facts.

Sample Best Practice Local Ordinance .pdf | 308k Overview: Best Practice Local Ordinance Regarding Outdoor Wood Furnaces

Sample Best Practice Local Ordinance

.pdf | 308k

Overview: Best Practice Local Ordinance Regarding Outdoor Wood Furnaces