The Latest from Montreal

In the Spring of 2009, despite a strong campaign by APC that was well supported by HPBA and HPBAC, the Montréal City Council voted in favor of banning the installation of all new cordwood fueled heating appliances within the city. APC subsequently launched a legal challenge against the new by-law, based on the premise that it had no credible scientific basis. The first hearing by the Québec provincial court regarding APC’s legal action against the city occurred in November. The judge ruled that the case had sufficient merit to go forward to a full hearing, probably sometime this summer. The by-law stays in force until then. It should be noted that no other Canadian jurisdiction has indicated it has any plans to follow Montréal’s lead. Four Canadian manufacturers have contributed a total of $10,000 towards APC’s mounting legal costs.

The Review of the EPA NSPS- How will it affect your business?

by John Crouch, HPBA/PFI Staff


As everyone in our industry now knows, the EPA is deep into the process of reviewing their program that certifies clean burning wood stoves, which is formally known as the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for Wood Heaters. A lot of retailers and reps have questions about how these changes might affect their business, so HPBA has produced a short Q&A piece for the affiliate newsletters.

What is NSPS?

The NSPS is the EPA's wood stove certification program. It is the rule which was adopted in 1988 that requires that all wood stoves manufactured or imported in the U.S. be certified by the EPA. This current review is the first revision of this rule in 20 years.


What will this review cover?

The EPA is at least considering covering everything that burns solid fuel in this review;

• A lower passing grade for wood stoves
• Certification process for pellet stoves and boilers, as well as corn stoves
• Removal of the exemption for single burn rate heaters and furnaces
• Factory built and masonry fireplaces
• Masonry heaters
• Outdoor hydronic heaters
  

How will everything get certified and will there be enough time?

This is one of the key issues for HPBA. Some of these products will need more time than others to get all of the models certified. How long the passing grades are for each product will also impact how long it takes to recertify the line. It's quite possible that there will be seasons where not all of your favourite models have completed the new certification. There will be many detailed changes to both the wood stove and the pellet stove test, and it's impossible to know which units will be easy to recertify and which will be difficult.

What is HPBA doing about the NSPS process?

HPBA has retained the very best professional assistance available to us: Mr. David Menotti, of the law firm of Pillsbury, Winthrop, Shaw Pittman. David has represented our industry on air quality issues since 1985 with the state regulation in Colorado, and he was instrumental in the negotiations that lead to the first NSPS in 1988. David is now a well-known air attorney and has represented many industries (such as the American iron and steel industry) on issues with the EPA.

HPBA is also using the services of Bob Ferguson, who was once the lead engineer at Vermont Castings, and is now a private consultant. Bob is working very hard on the details of the new pellet stove test method, and on a new ASTM test process for stick stoves, which may remove some of the 'busy work' in the certification testing process, which in turn will lower those costs. Bob is also assembling blinded data for all the test runs for all the existing certified stoves, which will help determine the new passing grade. In addition, many members have volunteered extraordinary amounts of time in meetings and strategy sessions, with the full support of their companies.

This sounds expensive; are the manufacturers paying for this?

The HPBA board of directors voted to assess solid fuel hearth manufacturers for half of the costs of this effort and match that with funds from our Government Affairs budget. Every company whose product depends on solid fuel has been assessed each quarter for their share of actual expenses. All appliance manufacturers and importers, as well as all chimney, hearth pad, and accessory members have been invoiced. In the two invoices sent in 2009 almost $50,000 was raised from Manufacturers above and beyond their dues. This is being matched from the HPBA Government Affairs budget. Of course, existing HPBA staff assets are being used wherever possible, and many key volunteers have contributed hundreds of hours of their time gratis.

I've donated to my affiliate's NSPS effort; on what will my donation be spent?

Our team is in frequent contact with the EPA staff, including face to face meetings in North Carolina, Oregon, and Georgia. In addition, the ASTM working groups are meeting twice a month, generally by phone, to plan the new test methods. In 2009 our legal bills and meeting expenses exceeded $200,000. Affiliate contributions are being used to support the general program and to minimize the disruption to our industry.

Your donation and sacrifice is very much appreciated!

2010 will be the cusp, the key moment, of this whole process.

What wood stoves and pellet stoves look like and how well they operate (heat) for the next 10-20 years, may well be determined over the next 12 - 18 months. Even though this is a tough year for all of us, we can't let up.

HPBAC Meets With TSSA To Discuss Gas Showroom Advisory

Following an advisory by TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) concerning the venting of gas showroom fireplaces in Ontario, representatives from HPBAC met with the authority last Tuesday (April 13th). An in principal and practical way forward was mapped out.
In May HPBAC Ontario Chapter will be holding three industry meetings in Ottawa, London and Toronto to better inform both members and non members alike. Representatives from TSSA will be present. All are welcome. Please register in advance.
Details are available from Elena Morrison at: hpbacontario@bellnet.ca

CSA B366 Draft out for public review

The latest version of B366.1, Solid Fuel-Fired Central Heating Appliances, is now available for public review:

https://review.csa.ca/opr/opr_list.asp

Check out my @constantcontact newsletter

February 2010 HPBAC Voice Newsletter
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs046/1101832902636/archive/1103023825576.html

PLUG PULLED ON FEDERAL ECOENERGY RETROFIT PROGRAM: FUTURE OF MATCHING PROVINCIAL PROGRAMS UNCLEAR

The federal government has suspended the Eco-Energy Retrofit Homes Program. After promising that the program would be available until March 2011, Ottawa announced that it would no longer accept applications to book pre-retrofit evaluations as of midnight on March 31, 2010. This means that anyone who has not already booked an evaluation is no longer eligible for a rebate. The program provided homeowners with incentives to have their homes evaluated for energy efficiency, and then perform upgrades to improve their rating. One of the qualifying upgrades was changing out old technology woodstoves. Critics are already voicing their concern and disapproval of the decision, on the heels of the Home Renovation Tax Credit being recently extinguished.
Cancelling the retrofit program is a serious mistake, says Green Communities Canada. "Canada needs to get with the program," said Clifford Maynes, executive director of Green Communities Canada. "Instead of turning its back on energy efficiency, Ottawa should demonstrate vision and leadership. Canada needs a bold commitment to bring Canada's inefficient housing stock into the 21st Century."
The decision by the federal government seems to have taken the provinces by surprise. No news yet as to how the matching provincial programs may be affected, although the federal government has said it will continue to offer administrative support for those programs.

One of many reasons why the installation of clean wood burning heating appliances should never have been banned in Montreal

Winds cut power for 95,000 in Quebec
Schools close because of dangerous driving conditions
Last Updated: Friday, February 26, 2010 9:50 AM ET Comments8Recommend9
CBC News
High winds cut power to about 95,000 Hydro-Québec customers Friday morning, while officials closed dozens of schools because of blustery road conditions.
Environment Canada issued wind warnings for Montreal, Trois-Rivières and Quebec City and reported gusts as high as 90 km/h in several regions including the Laurentians, the Lanaudière, and the Outaouais.
The hydro outages are affecting 14,000 customers in Quebec City, 3,200 in Chaudière Appalaches, 15,300 in the Laurentians, 17,500 in the Lanaudière, 5,500 in the Outaouais, and 2,100 households in Laval.
The power utility said it could take part of the day to restore electricity to all its customers.
Most schools in the greater Quebec City region were closed, including those under the Central Quebec School Board, because of high winds and blowing snow on major highways in the area.
Transport Quebec urged drivers to be cautious.
On Thursday, the Transport Ministry closed Highway 10 in the Eastern Townships because of high winds, blowing snow and poor visibility.Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2010/02/26/wind-gusts-knock-out-power-in-quebec.html#ixzz0genfEPEC