Clean, Green New Zealand. Keeping The Home Fires Burning, Air Pollution Warning Issued

This may be of interest to asthma suffers thinking that New Zealand's Clean, Green environment may provide some relief from their condition.

New Zealand has the world's second highest prevalence of asthma in the world (source Asthma and Respiratory Foundation) with hospital admission rates for asthma doubling in 30 years.

Some locations often fail air quality standards. For instance Mosgiel fails air quality PM10 standards about 8 times a year. See warning on Mosgiel pollution. The pollution is caused mainly by domestic heating appliances although one emission source in the north east of the town contributes about 7% to the total.

Other towns are said to have breached the national standard more frequently- Arrowtown has failed 29 times and Milton 19.

In June Environment Minister Nick Smith admitted that 10 NZ cities and towns were unlikely to meet air quality targets by the year 2013, he said that the overwhelming proportion of pollution is caused by home fires, and to a lesser extent vehicles.

About two third of New Zealanders live in locations where they are exposed to air pollution but it's a significant problem in some some areas. Approximately 1,100 people die prematurely in urban areas from air pollution every year

For the effects of this type of pollution and comments about the problem being compounded by 'scarily cold houses' see NZ's high winter death rate and burning wood to keep warm.

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New Zealand's High Winter Death Rate And Burning Wood To Keep Warm

The University of Otago published a report last year stating that NZ was in the upper end of an international scale for excess winter mortality (EWM) and that 1600 more people died over the winter months than the summer (On overage, 600 more deaths occurred in July compared to February) and that this high EWM had remained pretty constant for the last 20 years.

Otago's Associate Professor Michael Baker reported that NZ's EWM is 2% higher than the mean mortality rates of 14 European countries, even though many of those countries had lower winter temperatures than New Zealand. Why is that?

He said "One theory is that countries like Canada, Norway and Russia have such cold winters that people have developed better insulated houses and other strategies to survive winter. More temperate countries like New Zealand, Ireland and Portugal have a higher EWM because we are less well adapted to cold conditions."

The report concluded that further research was needed:

"EWM in NZ is substantial and at the upper end of the range observed internationally. Interventions to reduce EWM are important, but the surprising lack of variation in EWM by ethnicity, region and deprivation, provides little guidance for how such mortality can be reduced. More targeted research is needed to explore a number of other possible factors that could be contributing to EWM, including the role of climate, influenza, behaviour, crowding in winter, levels of home heating & thermal performance of houses."

Other recent studies seem to confirm that there is a significant problem with the condition of many houses in New Zealand with poor insulation, damp and mould having serious effects on human health.

A year earlier Professor Robert Vale, a sustainable architecture expert, said he was "appalled" by the state of New Zealand's houses. In his opinion even New Zealand's most ecologically advanced houses were 40 years behind European cutting-edge eco-houses:
"In terms of energy efficient houses we are not very far along. It's pretty much where the Scandinavians were in the 1960s."

"Scarily Cold" HousesVale emigrated to New Zealand 13 years ago and described the average New Zealand house as "scarily cold", badly insulated, with huge expanses of single-glazed glass and a nightmare to heat. He and his wife were expecting a country that was environmentally advanced but instead found a country with little interest in sustainability."It's not what we expected, with New Zealand's clean green image and the anti-nuclear thing."

Vale pointed out 17 houses that are being promoted as paragons of energy efficiency on the Building and Research Association of New Zealand's website. These were supposed to be zero and low energy houses but more than two thirds used more energy than the average NZ house, one used 57,000KWh in a year - 5 times the average of 11,000KWh per year.

One large Lyttelton house with a floor area of 330 sq m, used little electricity but more than 53,000KWh worth of firewood each year whilst another promoted as a zero energy home used an LPG heater and a log burner with a wetback.

NZ's Houses Compared to Refugee Camp Huts
According to a health expert 3 out of 4 homes in some regions of New Zealand were so cold, damp and mouldy that they were on a par with refugee camp huts. Associate Professor Jeroen Douwes of Massey University cited a 2005 study, that found mould in 75 per cent of the 1310 households surveyed.

University of Otago public health researcher Professor Philippa Howden-Chapman said New Zealand's high asthma rate could well be related to the incidence of damp houses.

Up to one in five New Zealanders suffer the chronic and sometimes life-threatening respiratory condition. Wellington's Asthma Research Group has found that asthmatics allergic to mould had much more severe symptoms, and were almost twice as likely to end up in intensive care.

Health Ruined in Quarter of a Million Homes
Another study estimated that occupants' health has been ruined in 250,000 New Zealand homes and that both old and new houses were affected. The houses were so cold, damp and poorly built that they caused serious health problems. It's estimated that it would cost $20 billion to put it right.

Air Pollution
The Ministry of the Environment has said that poor air quality is a significant issue in some areas of New Zealand and that two thirds of the population live in areas that can experience air pollution.

It's estimated that 1,100 people die prematurely in urban areas from air pollution and that most poor air quality is caused by high winter levels of particulate matter (PM₁₀) from wood and coal used for home heating. Auckland also experiences high levels of PM₁₀ from road transport.

New Zealand Homes Compared to Refugee Camp Huts

Following on from Sunday's article about poor standards in New Zealand's homes, I came across this article in Scoop and thought it may be worthwhile mentioning it here because it helps to demonstrate just how serious and widespread this problem is.

According to a health expert 3 out of 4 homes in some regions of New Zealand were so cold, damp and mouldy that they were on a par with refugee camp huts....


Source: The Dominion Post
by Ruth Hill

"At a workshop in Wellington yesterday on the health effects of leaky buildings, Associate Professor Jeroen Douwes of Massey University cited a 2005 study, which found mould in 75 per cent of the 1310 households surveyed.

"This is comparable to a study of Palestinian refugee camps, where the rate was 78 per cent."

Nationally, about 35 per cent of New Zealand households report mould in one or more rooms, compared with 18 per cent in Europe.

A survey by Otago University public health researchers of 33 peer-reviewed studies found exposure to damp and mould raised the risk for respiratory problems -wheezing, coughing and asthma - by 30 per cent to 50 per cent.

Conservative estimates put the direct health costs of leaky buildings in New Zealand at $61 million a year.

Public awareness of respiratory problems associated with damp houses remained low, he said.

"This issue affects potentially tens of millions of people worldwide, and there is a big case for more interventions and research."

University of Otago public health researcher Professor Philippa Howden-Chapman, who chaired the workshop, said New Zealand's high asthma rate could well be related to the incidence of damp houses.

Up to one in five New Zealanders suffer the chronic and sometimes life-threatening respiratory condition. Wellington's Asthma Research Group has found that asthmatics allergic to mould had much more severe symptoms, and were almost twice as likely to end up in intensive care...."

Health Ruined in Quarter Million NZ Homes

Source NZ Herald

by Cliff Taylor

"A quarter of a million homes are so cold, damp and poorly built they are causing serious health problems, according to a significant new study.

The problem with the houses - which are poorly insulated, some with black mould and potentially toxic air quality - could cost more than $20 billion to put right, say report authors.

Both old and new homes affected

It is not just a problem with old homes. Many new homes and renovated homes lack adequate insulation, heating, ventilation and double-glazing, as builders and landlords invest their money instead in superficial improvements to increase houses' value.

The New Zealand Business Council for Sustainable Development, which commissioned the survey of 3500 households, says the country is suffering a "massive" housing problem and it has called for law changes to bring homes up to scratch.

Respondents said they and their children suffered from a wide range of illnesses, including sinus problems, mould allergies, asthma, bronchitis and pneumonia, caused by damp and badly insulated homes.

Newcomers say 'they've never been colder in homes'

Business Council chief executive Peter Neilson says, "Talk to anyone coming to New Zealand and they say they have never been colder in homes."

The problem has been made worse by rising electricity costs. People responding to the survey said they had been forced to move into the lounge during winter to keep warm; and mould and damp had caused their children to be repeatedly admitted to hospital with respiratory and other health problems.

See also

Plan unveiled to upgrade New Zealand's million unhealthy, inefficient homes

Killer mould in schools - the "new asbestos"

National announces plan to keep homes cold and damp

Problems with damp and cold housing among Pacific families in New Zealand

Leaky Homes

Better Home Heating Improves Childhood Asthma

Source: Scoop.co.nz, Wed 24 Sept 2008

"Further analysis of the 'Housing, Heating and Health' study conducted by the University of Otago, Wellington, and led by Professor Philippa Howden-Chapman, shows that improved home heating reduces asthma symptoms in children in New Zealand.

The results of the latest study have just been published in the prestigious British Medical Journal.

The study examined 409 children in five NZ communities between the ages of 6 and 12 with diagnosed asthma, both before and after more effective heating was installed in their homes. The better heating included heat pumps, flued gas heaters or pellet burners.

Children's health improves after better heating installed

The results showed a positive improvement in the children's health following the installation of better heating. Specifically the children had improved health, less sleep disturbance and wheezing, less coughing at night and improved respiratory symptoms. They also had fewer sick days off school and fewer visits to the doctor and chemist.

Although there was no significant difference in lung function, asthma symptoms such as coughing and wheezing were significantly reduced.

“This study shows that sustainable heaters are good for children’s health. It’s possible for families to be warm inside, without polluting the air outside. The recent Emissions Trading package builds on this work and allocates a billion dollars to insulate houses and install healthy heating. We expect to see improvements in respiratory health as a result,” says Professor Howden-Chapman.

The houses in the study had a mean temperature rise of 1.10C in the living room and 0.57C in the child's bedroom. They also had significantly less polluting nitrogen dioxide (NO2) from unflued gas heaters in both the living and bedrooms.

Further analysis of the health records of family members will determine other results from the heating intervention, along with a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis comparing the cost of healthy heating with the public good of ongoing savings in positive health impacts, energy use and climate change mitigation.

25% of NZ children report Asthma symtpoms

Asthma is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases in childhood and 25% of NZ children report asthma symptoms. It is the second most common reason for hospital admissions for children. Asthmatic children also have more days off school and caregivers have to take more time off work. It also results in higher health and pharmaceutical costs.

There is growing evidence that indoor pollutants such at NO2, cold house temperatures, damp and mould and second-hand smoke all aggravate asthma, although the exact causal relationships are unclear. However children, because of their lack of physical development inhale more air, and therefore more pollutants, than adults in the same environment.

Indoor pollutants also have a thousand-fold greater chance of being inhaled than outdoors. One third of NZ homes use unflued gas heaters which emit significant concentrations of NO2 compared to heat pumps or other flued gas appliances. Unflued gas heaters also release large amounts of water vapour which exacerbates mould and dampness.

This research was funded by a public/private partnership consisting of: the Health Research Council, Contact Energy,the Ministry for the Environment, EECA, HNZC, Hutt Valley and Capital Coast District Health Boards and the LPG Association."

The Problems Migrants Encounter with Housing

One of the most frequent problems that migrants from developed countries have is with the condition of the housing stock in New Zealand. Much of it is wooden framed, ranging from old Kauri villas to mansions and there are often problems associated with dampness, lack of adequate heating and poor insulation.

There has been a lot of coverage in recent years of a phenomenon called "leaky homes syndrome," it's just another way of describing weather tightness issues and it affects all sorts of buildings - right through from apartment blocks, to townhouses and million dollar homes. For more information see http://www.nailed.co.nz/The_Problem_Explained_943.aspx

If you are thinking about purchasing a property in New Zealand be sure to have a full and proper inspection carried out and make it a condition of the sale that the report be satisfactory.


Most of the houses are timber framed with a skin to keep the weather out - this could be comprised of overlapping boards, plywood, thin brick veneer, metal sheets, plaster or other materials. In older houses there is often no insulation in either the external walls or roof voids, this can cause problems with heat retention during the winter, or over-heating during the summer. Condensation on cold external surfaces is also a problem and this can lead to fungal growth and unhealthy living conditions.

Many houses are built on piles which are usually wooden and can be prone to rot, suspended floors are often uninsulated and draughty.

Problems such as these have resulted in changes being made to the building code to ensure that adequate insulation and, where needed, double glazing is fitted as standard to new homes. However, despite the low winter temperatures in some parts of New Zealand there is seldom any provision for heating other than an open fire or wood burner. Some home owners are installing heat pumps (a type of electric fan heater) but these can be expensive to buy, fit and operate. Heat pumps may also be used to dehumidify and cool the air.

New Zealand has the second highest prevalence of asthma in the world and it is thought that mold spores in damp homes, dust mites and smoke from wood fires are three triggers for the disease.

What can you do?

• If you're buying a house have it properly surveyed and if necessary set aside money to bring the house up to a standard that you are comfortable with. A house that faces north is desirable because of the amount of solar gain it will accumulate during the winter. Be wary of houses that are in valleys or shielded in some way from the winter sun.
  

• If you're renting look very carefully for signs of damp or mold growth, check around window openings, the edges of carpets, in closets and linen cupboards. Also look for signs of water penetration and ask what type of insulation is present in the property. You will need to think about how you are going to heat the house in winter and whether or not to buy a dehumidifier.

to be continued..............

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