For those with biomass boilers, renewable heat is a critical aspect of their business. However, what you buy and use on site can carry more weight than most would think.
In recent months, there have been significant developments and tightening of permitting compliance responsibilities regarding what wood boilers should be burning. For sites only combusting virgin wood sourced from specialised suppliers or their own/wholesale produce like straw or miscanthus, the changes are less relevant. However, if a site burns waste wood, there are some things that you need to know.
What’s in your Permit?
If you want to incinerate waste wood, then you will need a permit either with your Local Authority (under 1 MW thermal input) or the Environment Agency (over 1 MW). Each permit will state the permitted wastes types and quantities that you may combust in a given year. You will also find the full source description of each waste type and their European Waste Catalogue (EWC) Codes.