Balancing sustainability, research and creativity: Ecodesign 2022

The balance between sustainability and design: this is the main objective that the domestic heating sector is trying and will try to pursue, both in the present and in the near future, with targeted investments in research and development and a creativity typical of “Made in Italy”.

Products fuelled by wood or pellets need to be high-performance, but in order not to pollute the air with uncontrolled emissions, it is the task of institutions and manufacturers to promote the conscious consumption of tools with a high green potential. For this reason, the European Union has decided to establish eco-design parameters for products such as stoves, fireplaces and boilers.

Ecodesign 2022, this will be the name of the European green measures project. The plan essentially involves two main points: on 1 January 2020, the eco-design obligation for biomass boilers was triggered, a measure that will also be compulsory from 1 January 2022 for domestic biomass appliances, i.e. stoves, fireplaces and cookers.

Ecodesign 2022: the project

There are two parameters to take into consideration, EU directives relating to the Ecodesign project that clarify the minimum requirements to be met in order to be placed on the European market.

Requirements concerning two main aspects:

• Point number one: energy efficiency;
• Point number two: the control of emissions of particulate matter (PM), gaseous organic compounds (OGC), carbon monoxide (CO) and nitrogen oxides (NOx).

There are no doubts about the eco-sustainable value of pellets and wood: renewable fuels have an almost completely neutral impact on CO2 emissions into the atmosphere and allow a reduction of around 95% of total CO2 emissions compared to the equivalent use of a traditional fossil fuel, such as gas or diesel.

However, if they are burned in technologically obsolete appliances, they risk having a very negative impact on air quality, especially in terms of particulate matter and gas emissions. It is therefore crucial to promote the purchase of the latest generation of stoves, fireplaces and boilers: they can drastically reduce environmental impact and their modern design can breathe new life into the home.

This is the mission that the European Union has undertaken to accomplish: to establish eco-design standards and criteria for biomass heat generators, which must be complied with by manufacturers and will lead to an improvement in the performance and sustainability of new products on sale both on the national and European markets. This is a big step towards reducing harmful emissions into the atmosphere while creating culture and value in a sector of the Italian economy characterised by vision, innovation and excellence.

Ecodesign 2022: the regulations

The Ecodesign Regulations will be valid in all 28 EU and EEA (European Economic Area) countries with the following starting dates:

• Biomass boilers: for biomass boilers the eco-design obligation will start on 1 January 2020 (EU Regulation 2015/1189 – already in place)
• Stoves, fireplaces: for domestic biomass appliances (for stoves, fireplaces and cookers) the eco-design obligation will start on 1 January 2022 (EU Regulation 2015/1185).

The Regulations also stipulate which parameters and methods for measuring and calculating emissions must be the same for all EU member states, unquestionable, reliable and based on generally recognised measurement criteria.