Volume One 15. Resource Quality (Water, Air, Soil) 2016 if, in conjunction with the prohibition on open fires and outdoor burning of rubbish, older style enclosed burning appliances are replaced at the end of their 15 year life. This policy seeks to ensure that this phase out occurs by encouraging people to either replace existing solid fuel burning appliances with modern and compliant solid fuel burning appliances or install other clean forms of heating (e.g. electric). The Council retains records of the installation of fuel burning appliances and the priority for action will be those solid fuel burning appliances installed prior to 2001 (i.e. 15 years prior to 2016). Measures included in Chapter 18 - Energy in promoting and encouraging energy efficient dwellings, including passive heating, will also assist in this regard. [RPS, R] Policy 15.2.3 – Require all new multi-fuel burning appliances to comply with the National Environmental Standards for Air Quality design standard for wood burning appliances. The NESAQ contains regulations for wood burning appliances, including Regulation 23 which sets a design standard requiring wood burning appliances to discharge less than 1.5 grams of particles for each kilogram of dry wood burnt. The Council is aware that multi-fuel burning appliances exist that can burn wood as well as other fuels. Currently there are no standards in the NESAQ that apply to multi-fuel burning appliances. However, to ensure that new residential developments and the replacement of existing burning appliances do not reduce air quality in the Blenheim airshed any further, it is appropriate to require any new multi-fuel burning appliances to comply with the NESAQ design standard on an ongoing basis. [R] Policy 15.2.4 – Refuse discharge permit applications to discharge PM 10 into air within the Blenheim airshed if the discharge is likely to increase the concentration of PM by more 10 than 2.5 micrograms per cubic metre (24 hour average) in any part of the airshed, unless: (a) the Blenheim airshed average exceedance is less than 1 per year; or (b) the applicant offsets the proposed PM discharge by reducing PM discharges 10 10 from another source(s) in the airshed by the same or greater amount. At present, non-residential (e.g. commercial, industrial and public health) emissions represent less than 10 percent of PM emissions in Blenheim ambient air. There is the potential for total PM 10 emissions from this source to increase as a result of growth. To achieve reductions in ambient PM concentrations in the Blenheim airshed, it is important that non-residential sources do not 10 significantly increase their emissions as this would compromise the gains achieved by reducing emissions from the domestic sector. The policy therefore establishes a threshold for acceptable increase in PM concentration. The threshold reflects Regulation 17 of the NESAQ and applies 10 to discharges requiring discharge permit only. Regulation 17 also provides for the exemptions in (a) and (b) of the policy. Methods of implementation The methods listed below are to be implemented by the Council unless otherwise specified. [R] 15.M.26 Regional rules Maintain a Blenheim airshed and establish other airsheds as necessary to allow the application of regional rules to achieve compliance with the NESAQ. Apply regional rules to prohibit the outdoor burning of organic and inorganic waste and the discharge of contaminants from open fires within the Blenheim airshed. An exception applies to open fires in scheduled heritage resources included in the MEP. 15 – 31