Council amended a bylaw that will allow the residents of Houston one more year to take advantage of rebates on wood stoves.
Originally, the bonus had ended in December of 2010, Fire Chief Ken Thomson said. After that date not only would the District given rebate of $300 ended, but those who were found with non-EPA certified wood stoves would be fined.
Called the Woodstove Changeout Program, Houston was the first municipality in all of Canada to swear in a bylaw making it mandatory to have a woodstove that meets with the stricter emissions set by newer wood stoves.
“It’s just to give people an extra opportunity,” Thomson said.
The original deadline was set before the economic crunch of 2008 and the dropping economy ever since. The Bulkley Valley Airshed Managment Society, who offers at $250 rebate, is also continuing with their program into 2011.
The original bylaw was enacted in July 4, 2006, and other than the date, no other part of the bylaw was amended.
Newer, certified wood stoves are proven to improve air quality, which in valleys can be doubly important because smoke will just hang in the air, posing a health risk to those with respitory problems.