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The Clean Air Act 1993 and Smoke Control Areas
Under the Clean Air Act, local authorities may declare the whole or part of the district of
the authority to be a ‘smoke control area’. It is an offence to emit smoke from a chimney
of a building, a furnace, or any fixed boiler if located within a designated smoke control
area. It is also an offence to acquire any unauthorised fuels for use within a smoke control
area, unless it is for use in an appliance exempted from the controls which generally apply
to the smoke control area.
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has powers under this
Act to authorise smokeless fuels or exempt appliances for use in smoke control areas
in England. In Scotland and Wales, this power rests with Ministers in the devolved
administrations for those respective countries. Separate legislation, the Clean Air
Order 1981, applies in Northern Ireland. Therefore it is a requirement that fuels burnt
or obtained for use in smoke control areas have been properly authorised in relevant
regulations, and that appliances used to burn solid fuel in such areas (other than any
authorised fuels) have been exempted by an Order made and signed by the Secretary of
State, or Minister in the devolved administrations.
This appliance has been recommended as suitable for use in smoke control areas when
burning wood logs.
Further information on the requirements of the Clean Air Act can be found online, at
http://smokecontrol.defra.gov.uk/. Your local authority is responsible for implementing
the Clean Air Act, including designation and supervision of smoke control areas, and you
can contact them for details regarding Clean Air Act requirements.
