An idea to address Tasmania's air quality calls on councils to ban wood heaters in new residential developments and redevelopments in problem areas.
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University of Tasmania's School of Technology, Environment and Design adjunct professor Pam Allan floated the idea and said it would address the issue in the short term.
"It's a difficult issue, because a lot of people like their wood heaters ... but if you're building a new house it might be easier to persuade them from the outset.
"On the one hand people don't like breathing in nasty chemicals from wood smoke but on the other hand people want to be able to have a choice as to whether they have a wood heater in their home," she said.
Ms Allan said a long term solution would be looking to New Zealand, where councils develop air quality plans, through community consultation, to reduce the impact of smoke emissions.
The federal government's 2001 $2 million wood heater buy-back scheme cut use by 30 per cent. Before the City of Launceston council continued the program, offering home owners a $500 rebate to replace their wood heater.
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Since the buy-back scheme in 2001, Tasmania's Environment Protection Authority has been focusing on the 'use your wood heaters responsibly' message to minimise smoke emissions.
The buy-back and the education campaigns have helped but the conditions continue to reach severe air pollution levels in Launceston and more frequently in Perth, Longford, Hadspen and Westbury.
Prolonged exposure to smoke is a problem for people who have chronic illnesses but a study this year by UTAS' Menzies Institute for Medical Research put a price to the health costs.
It found the average yearly health costs in the state were $293 million due to wood heater smoke. This translated to $4232 per wood heater.
The council's chief executive Michael Stretton said the council had not considered a policy to ban wood heaters in new building developments or redevelopments.
"What we have done is to oversee the wood heater buy-back scheme, which ran between 2003 and 2013. The last five years of the program were supported solely by the [council]," he said.
"Nearly 600 wood heaters were removed from homes across the municipality. The program was ultimately discontinued due to declining interest from the public.
"The council continues to support community education programs ... and we routinely investigate complaints about smoke nuisances in Launceston."
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