Fuel Switching: Oil to Wood Has Biggest Carbon Benefit

Alliance for Green Heat, January 4, 2013 - Switching to wood heating is an effective and inexpensive way to reduce a family's carbon footprint. One wood stove can reduce as much carbon as a typical solar PV system for less than 1/6th of the cost. Below are estimated carbon emissions savings for a typical Mid-Atlantic household switching to 60% wood heat, using EIA and EPA figures:

Switching From...	Metric Tons CO2 Saved/Yr Per Wood Stove
Electricity	1.7
Natural Gas	2.1
Propane	2.5
Oil	3.9

Current fuel oil users benefit the most from switching to wood heat, saving almost 4 tons of carbon dioxide each year – that's the equivalent to taking a car off the road for 9 months! Homeowners who use wood to cover all of their home's heating needs – high-efficiency pellet stove users, for example – can save even more: up to 6.5 tons of carbon dioxide a year.