Residents have been urged not to turn to wood burning stoves and fire places to combat the energy price crisis and survive the winter.

The plea comes from Richmond Council amid concerns that a rise in the burning of wood and other materials is likely to pollute the air and could even create a health risk.

The council said: "A large contribution to poor air quality comes from wood burning in fireplaces, pits and stoves, including 'eco' certified ones."

And under the heading 'Smoke control', it said: "We discourage all forms of burning as it causes air pollution, can upset neighbours and can damage health - particularly of children, older people, and those with breathing and heart conditions."

On the issue of indoor burning, the Council said: "We encourage all residents to avoid or reduce indoor burning.

"If you have an exempt stove or an open fireplace keep it for special occasions and ensure you always burn an authorised dry fuel."

Richmond is one of a number of London boroughs taking part in a research project to understand the impact on health of using wood burning stoves.

Academics at Imperial College have been recruiting people from Richmond who burn solid-fuel in their homes to take part in an innovative research project.

Richmond borough won a joint DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs) bid alongside 13 other London boroughs to investigate the health effects of wood burning inside and outside the home.

One government research report calculated that wood burning in homes produces more small particle pollution than all road traffic in the UK.

Particle pollution is well known to damage health and cause early deaths. And the report concluded: "These toxins may enter the bloodstream and be transported around the body, lodging in the heart, brain and other organs. Therefore, exposure can result in serious impacts to health."

From 1 May 2021, it became an offence to sell, rather than to burn, unauthorised fuel. Authorised fuel has been dried and the moisture content reduced, so that when burned, it will produce less smoke and harmful pollutants. Dry storage of fuel is essential.

From 1 January 2022, all new wood burning and multi-fuel stoves and fireplaces had to adhere to strict new regulations known as eco-design. This is an efficiency accreditation scheme where wood burners and stoves pass rigorous tests to determine their emission and efficiency outputs. Appliances are given a rating from 1 to 5 based on their emissions and efficiency.

For anyone planning to install, replace or retrofit a wood burner in this borough, the Council encourages residents to choose appliances with a rating of 4 or 5.