EPA announces extraordinary overhaul of wood stove certification program

Confidence in wood stove testing program shaken in wake of Alaska and NESCAUM exposé

Richard Wayland leads the nation’s
technical air quality management
programs

On Tuesday, April 5, the EPA published letters that they sent to wood stove testing labs, announcing they were embarking on a historic review of certification paperwork, similar to the examination that the state of Alaska is conducting.

 

The publication of the letters may have been prompted by a freedom of information request from a reporter, who got access to the letters hours before the EPA published them.

 

The overhaul could end up costing stove manufacturers large sums of money and the revocation of some models' certification.  This is sending reverberations throughout the manufacturing community of wood and pellet heating appliances, which has never faced such scrutiny and oversight since wood stoves were first required to be certified in 1988.

 

The EPA announcement is also derailing, at least temporarily, a move by members of Congress to refile legislation that would establish a national wood stove change out program heralded by industry as the best way to combat excessive wood smoke.  The EPA emphasized that local and state change out programs rely on EPA certification documents to help determine which stoves can achieve the best emission reductions. 

 

The immediate actions by the EPA include using a template similar to the one used by the state of Alaska to see if their review of deficiencies in paperwork matches the the state's review.  This indicates, as early reports confirm, that the EPA may not agree with some of the categories of deficiencies Alaska thought were significant.

 

The EPA is also announcing that starting immediately, they will be conducting far more intensive reviews of new certifications.  This is believed to also include the routine retesting waivers.  Under the current system, once a stove gets certified, it receives a 5-year certificate that can be renewed, without any additional testing, over and over.  While this benefits manufacturers who, prior to 2015, were still marketing stoves certified in the 1990s, it did not incentivize making even small improvements in the cleanliness or efficiency of the unit every 5 years.  

 

The letters to the EPA approved stove testing labs also put the labs under notice that they could lose their approved status if they do not improve their standard operating procedures. It is unclear why half of EPA approved labs and third-party certifiers appear to have expired approvals.  The newest third-party certifier, Guardian Fire Testing Laboratories, is based in New York, the state that has been providing most of the funding to NESCAUM through its energy department, NYSERDA.

List of EPA approved labs and 3rd
party certifiers who received letters

 

Although the letters the EPA sent to wood stove test labs dealt mostly with enforcement issues, they did not come from the EPA's Office of Enforcement, but rather from Richard Wayland, the Director of the Air Quality Assessment Division, which typically does not handle such measures.  Wayland’s Division is now under a new high profile political appointee, Joseph Goffman, who was one of Biden's top advisors during the presidential transition.  Under Goffman is Tomas Carbonell, the Deputy Assistant Administrator for Stationary Sources, another political appointee who worked on the 2015 wood heater NSPS during his tenure at the Environmental Defense Fund.  This may indicate a shifting and larger role for senior leadership at the Office of Air and Radiation, a potential sign that the Biden Administration is taking the NESCAUM report very seriously.

 

The EPA stopped short of implementing some of the recommendations in the NESCAUM report.  For instance, they have not yet indicated any interest in revoking an ASTM cordwood test method that NESCAUM and Alaska found to be flawed.  However, the agency did emphasize that the recently approved IDC cordwood test method could be used by any manufacturer and updated their approval of the method, possibly to correct an error found by veteran stove tester Ben Myren.  That error, which the Alliance for Green Heat highlighted in a recent blog, dealt with the amount of bark that must be left on logs during certification testing, and highlights the precarious role of the EPA in approving test methods where the underlying data has not been publicly released for experts to review.  It is unclear if EPA even had access to the IDC test method's underlying data which is owned by NYSERDA.  If the agency does have the data, it could make it available or it may have to disclose it through freedom of information requests.  

The EPA's announcement of this major overhaul comes just days after many top stove manufacturers and the main industry association, the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association,  filed comments vigorously opposing the results of the Alaska stove certification review. If the EPA does not approve Alaska's scheme of culling out stoves with too many deficiencies in their paperwork and which emit more than 6 grams an out during test runs, Alaska may be forced to only allow the new installation of pellet appliances in the Fairbanks area, that is fighting federal non-attainment status.

For many years, experts have known of the mounting complexities and loopholes in testing wood stoves. Then, by 2020, it became apparent that many stoves that were tested above 2 grams an hour were somehow able to test to below 2 grams an hour without being altered, calling into question whether the regulations led to a cleaner generation of wood stoves.  Pellet stoves and boilers however have genuinely become cleaner and more efficient from the tighter 2020 emission standards because of their automated functions and consistent fuel qualities. 

Related stories

EPA's cordwood test protocol moves forward (July 2021)

EPA and states vigorously defend stove audits (Sept. 2020)

Opinions of top stove industry insiders on controversial topics (Aug. 2017)

Study shows environmental advantages of pellet stoves and exaggerations by manufacturers (Oct. 2015)

 

Trump Administration to change Obama era wood stove and boiler emission regulations

Delaying or weakening emission regulations will impact thousands of communities nationwide

The EPA is “taking steps to provide relief to wood heater manufacturers and retailers” according to a statement released by the EPA.  The EPA expects to issue a proposed rule this spring that could potentially weaken parts of the regulations enacted under the Obama administration.

January 2019 update: The EPA has proposed giving a 2-year sell through for wood boilers and furnaces, allowing manufacturers to make and sell Step 1 units right up until May 2020.  Those units could then be sold through May 2022 by manufacturers directly or by retailers. Attorney Generals from seven states filed comments saying the EPA did not have the legal authority to provide such sell-throughs, portending a legal fight.

March 2020 update: The EPA issued its final rule and decided not to provide any sell-through periods for any class of wood heater.

The April 2018 move to provide relief is supported  by companies such as Central Boiler, the largest outdoor wood boiler manufacturer in North America, who has been aggressively lobbying to delay and weaken the standards that were to come into effect in 2020. But to some smaller companies who have already invested in the R&D to meet the stricter 2020 standards, the EPA announcement undermines the significant investment they’ve made in designing cleaner and more efficient wood heaters. 

Thousands of cities, towns and communities are impacted by excessive wintertime levels of wood smoke, posing health risks and undermining support for an iconic renewable energy technology.

It is widely expected that part of the relief that EPA will be providing to industry is a three-year delay in the emission standards that were  set to take effect in June 2020.  Republicans in the House of Representatives had already passed legislation for a three-year delay, but the Senate has not.  A court filingby the EPA said that it “intends to take final action on this first proposed rule by this fall,” and that would allow manufacturers to slow down their R&D and certification testing.

But the EPA can pick and choose which parts of the Obama era wood heater regulations that it wants to rewrite and they say they will issue a series of federal register notices asking stakeholders for comment and input on substantive issues.  Experts believe that a statement released by the EPA indicate that emission test methods are being considered. 

Environmental groups, industry and the EPA have been wanting to move away from testing and certifying wood stoves with crib wood – 2x4s and 4x4s – which has been the standard testing fuel since the first set of wood stove regulations in 1988.  All parties want to switch to using cordwood, the fuel used by homeowners, recognizing that stoves have been fine tuned to run better on crib wood, rather than cordwood.  This has resulted in stoves that may run at 4 grams an hour of smoke in the lab, but may be 10 grams an hour or more in the hands of homeowners. In a statement this week, the EPA said it is concerned that its regulation“may not be achieving the environmental benefits it was supposed to provide.”  

The EPA appears likely to accelerate the transition to testing with cordwood but industry seems to favor an ASTM cordwood test method while some states and others are developing a new method that reflects how stoves are used by homeowners.  This method, call the Integrated Duty Cycle (IDC) method is still in draft form and is a drastic departure from the traditional way that stoves have been tested since the 1988.  

The EPA could also decide to weaken emission limits for wood boilers, which would primarily benefit the outdoor wood boiler industry led by Central Boiler.  

Since the 2015 regulations went into effect, scores of wood and pellet stoves and boilers have been tested to meet the 2020 standards and most prices have not gone up significantly.  The 2015 regulations began a process of requiring that manufacturers test and report their efficiencies, and delaying the 2020 deadline would set back efficiency disclosures, harming the ability of consumers to choose more efficient appliances. 

States are allowed to set stricter standards but not looser ones, and if the EPA were to weaken the federal rule too much, some states could either stick to the original standards set by the Obama administration in 2015 or develop new ones. States like New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington are already battling long-term wood smoke problems and have started to chart their own course for wood heater regulations. If several states adopted a different cordwood test method or stricter emission standards, they could have a “California effect” of moving the entire market.

“We are very concerned that the Trump Administration  may weaken consumer and environmental protections for wood stoves,” said John Ackerly, President of the Alliance for Green Heat, an independent non-profit that promotes cleaner and more efficient residential wood heating. “Wood and pellet stoves are vital to help families affordably reduce fossil heating fuels, but we can’t move this technology forward unless they can burn cleaner in people’s homes,” he said. 

March 11, 2020 update: The EPA finalized amendments to the 2015 NSPS and did not provide a retailer sell-through or any extensions for central heaters or room heaters.  They did remove pellet fuel minimum requirements but retained the list of prohibited fuels in the 2015 NSPS.

Hearth industry lists grounds for lawsuit against EPA

David Chung is a
lead attorney for HPBA

Updated: June 17, 2015
The US Court of Appeals has consolidated four lawsuits against the EPA’s wood heater rules together into one lawsuit.  The four parties are the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association (HPBA), the Pellet Fuels Institute, Tulikivi and Richard Burns & co..

Consolidation means that the four parties opposing parts of the rule will likely have to write and share one brief (while sticking to the typical 14,000 word limit), unless they can convince the court that separate briefs are appropriate or that they should be granted more space. This usually means that the four parties need to pick only their best arguments and discard some smaller or less appealing arguments.  In practice, this means that the challengers won’t be able to throw “everything but the kitchen sink” at EPA.

HPBA filed its list of issues (PDF link) as required by the court, giving the EPA and broader hearth community a detailed look into exactly what HPBA will be challenging and what they hope to change in the NSPS.  Their three main areas are:

* The 2020 particulate matter emission standards for wood heaters, residential hydronic heaters and residential forced-air furnaces are arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law.

* The “failure to include adjustments for test method precision” is in the compliance audit testing is arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or otherwise not in accordance with law.

* The ability of the EPA to use test methods and other provisions that are not developed through a consensus standard-making process.

HPBA’s challenge on stricter emissions standards in 2020 has been widely anticipated, but their challenge on EPA recognition of non-consensus test methods indicates that industry may be seeking more control over how indoor and outdoor boilers are accredited by the EPA.  At issue is the long simmering division between domestic outdoor wood boiler manufacturers and those companies importing and manufacturing European style boilers. 

The development of test methods for stoves and boilers have traditionally been dominated by the domestic stove and boiler industry through the EPA and/or ASTM.  The consensus driven ASTM process is open to anyone who wants to participate, but is dominated by HPBA insiders, experts and manufacturers. In recent years, New York State bucked that system by funding the development of an alternative test method outside the ASTM process that “is a major modification of EPA Method 28 WHH, intended to provide a method to evaluate a specific type of advanced wood heating boilers.” 

The NSPS says that boilers certified by New York State or qualified under the New York’s Renewable Heat New York (RHNY) program are to be automatically deemed EPA certified to meet the Step 1 emission limits.  If HPBA is successful in its challenge, it is unclear if all of those units could lose their certification, giving HPBA member companies a big edge over companies who participated in the New York program, which are mainly non-HPBA members.

Despite the lawsuit by HPBA, a number of their member stove manufacturers are already reassuring their distributors and retailers that they will be able to meet the 2020 emission standards.  And, many, if not most companies are starting R&D efforts to meet the stricter standards because there is no guarantee that the suit will be successful and they cannot afford to do nothing for several years.  Even those HPBA member companies who do not agree with the lawsuit have to help pay for it.  The suit is funded by assessments on all member manufacturers.

Rick Curkeet

HPBA is also challenging the EPA’s “failure” to take test method imprecision into account.   Rick Curkeet, one of the key figures involved in the study that shows wide testing imprecision, recently explained the issue in a public paper. 

“Unfortunately the EPA has chosen to ignore the reality that the test process does not appear to be able to reliably distinguish emissions performance differences of several grams per hour. Indeed, it will take some very good luck in addition to high quality testing to obtain acceptable results. A possible means of reducing this risk is for designers to focus R&D efforts on getting repeatable results and not simply a low number.”

Tom Morrissey

Tom Morrissey, the owner of Woodstock Soapstone Stoves, a non-HPBA member, says Curkeet’s study is riddled with flaws and should not be relied upon by policymakers or regulators.

The Pellet Fuel Institute (PFI), headed by Jennifer Hedrick is challenging the authority of the EPA to regulate pellet fuel and to include ENplus and CANplus, since the EPA did not offer an opportunity to comment on their inclusion in the rule.  (PFI court filing, PDF)  It is unlikely that PFI would want the EPA to remove references to certified pellet fuel, as PFI has worked diligently for many years to establish the certification standard, with EPA involvement.  PFI may just want the EPA to recognize their third party standard, but not get involved in what ingredients and characteristics should be allowed.  Most PFI members who manufacturer pellets have not agreed to become part of the PFI pellet certification program and some of them use ingredients in their pellets which are not allowed by the NSPS.

Jennifer Hedrick

For example, one of the other litigants, Richard Burns & Co, is a PFI member, a pellet producer and also a recycler of construction and demolition debris, and retailer of #2 wood chips.  The NSPS does not allow plywood, construction and demolition debris, paper and cardboard and many other items to be used to make pellets. The court filings from PFI and Richard Burns & Co should be available soon.

Tulikivi, the dominant leader of factory built masonry heaters, is suing the EPA because the NSPS did not include them as a regulated technology.  Since nearly all categories of wood heaters are now required to be certified by the EPA, lack of certification for masonry heaters will become a market barrier.  (Tulikivi court filing, PDF.)

The U.S. Court of Appeals will likely to soon be studying both sides of this argument.  Several air quality non-profit groups have also intervened to help the EPA defend the rule and will likely be arguing that that Step 2 emission standards are realistic and achievable, and if anything, are too lax.

Collaborative Stove Design Workshop Announcement

Rebecca Trojanowski of Brookhaven
National Lab is one of Organizers of
 the November Stove Design Workshop.

The Collaborative Stove Design Workshop held Nov. 4 – 7, 2014 was a gathering of stove professionals to study, test, and discuss advanced wood stove designs.  The Workshop was held at Brookhaven National Laboratory in New York and involved hands-on stove testing, daily review of test data, and a series of presentations by participants and other experts.

A follow-up event, the Fourth Wood Stove Design Challenge on the National Mall in Washington DC in November 2018 focused on automated controls for cord wood stoves and stoves that make electricity.

The final outcome and stove rankings of the 2014 event showed innovation is key for high performance. See the test results, presentations and photos from the event  here.

"We are extremely excited about this Workshop and already more than 10 companies and institutions are planning to submit automated stoves or stove prototypes, including some from Europe, China and New Zealand," said John Ackerly, President of the Alliance for Green Heat. "We are also very pleased that representatives from federal agencies and states will be attending not just to learn about automation, but to better understand wood stove testing and to network with industry," Ackerly said.

Stoves must have some type of automation that significantly reduces operator error, use of unseasoned wood, and/or start-up emissions.  To apply, stove designers must agree to share test data obtained during the Workshop with other participants and allow participants to inspect their technology to learn how it works. 

The Workshop was designed for participants to share their knowledge, learn from each other, and explore advanced stove designs that may help significantly reduce particulate emissions and meet potential strict emission standards set by the EPA.  The Workshop also developed an alternative test method for automated stoves, as allowed under the existing NSPS.

The finalist stoves were tested in a dilution tunnel and with other particular matter testing technology, using cord wood. Testing was done by Brookhaven staff, Ben Myren of Myren Consulting, and others.  The first prize winner received $1,000.

Participants:  Due to space limitations, there is only room for 40 participants in addition to the Organizing Committee and technicians.  We are looking for specialists from the stove industry, the international cookstove community, universities and government agencies as well as inventors.  Click here for the Participant Application form. Participant applications must be submitted by Sept. 1.

Stoves:  Stoves must include innovative, automated features that pre-empt the operator from controlling air intake, or some other technology that can significantly improve real world performance by reducing chances of misuse or extended smoldering.  Mitigating the impact of using unseasoned wood is also important. Click here for the Stove Application form. Stove applications must be submitted by July 1.

Logistics:  The Workshop will be held at the Brookhaven National Lab in Upton, New York, 1.5 hours east of New York City on Long Island.  There will be a $250 fee per participant to cover administrative and other   Lodging will be available in the Indigo hotel and participants must cover their own travel, lodging and meals.
costs.

Background: The Collaborative Stove Design Workshop is the second phase of the Wood Stove Design Challenge, following last year’s Wood Stove Decathlon on the National Mall in DC.   The Workshop will be a more collaborative event with some of the country’s top stove specialists.  It is partially modeled after an annual “Stove Camp” hosted by Aprovecho Research Center in Oregon, which uses an interdisciplinary approach to designing stoves that are often not patented, but open-sourced so that anyone can build them and improve upon them.  The Workshop is being sponsored by the Alliance for Green Heat and Brookhaven National Lab.

Organizing Committee:
The Organizing Committee oversees the Workshop, including selecting the stoves to test and the participants. Primary funding comes from NYSERDA, the US Forest Service and the Osprey Foundation.

John Ackerly, Alliance for Green Heat
Ellen Burkhard, NYSERDA
Tom Butcher, Brookhaven National Lab
Prof. Phil Hopke, Clarkson University
Craig Issod, founder of Hearth.com
Ben Myren, Myren Consulting, Inc.
Robert Rizzo, Mass. Department of Energy
Norbert Senf, Masonry Heater Association
Dean Still, Aprovecho Research Center
Rod Tinnemore, Washington Department of Ecology
Rebecca Trojanowski, Brookhaven National Lab

More updates on the Workshop will be posted on our website and blog and a monthly summary in our newsletter.  For questions or suggestions, please contact us at info@forgreenheat.org.

Related Post: Stoves Line Up to Compete in Stove Design Workshop (July 1, 2014)