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Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales

James Heydon Orcid Logo, Menna Price Orcid Logo, Ian Walker Orcid Logo, Paul Lewis, Rohit Chakraborty Orcid Logo, Caitlin Bunce Orcid Logo, Kori Sunter

Environmental Management, Volume: 76, Issue: 5, Start page: 171

Swansea University Authors: Menna Price Orcid Logo, Ian Walker Orcid Logo, Paul Lewis, Kori Sunter

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DOI (Published version): 10.1007/s00267-026-02463-8

Abstract

Burning solid fuels for home heating is a major source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and associated health risks across Europe. This article reports findings from a pilot study of a voluntary ‘burn alert’ system in Swansea, Wales, aimed at reducing domestic burning emissions. The system combine...

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Published in: Environmental Management
ISSN: 0364-152X 1432-1009
Published: Springer Nature 2026
Online Access: Check full text

URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71789
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This article reports findings from a pilot study of a voluntary &#x2018;burn alert&#x2019; system in Swansea, Wales, aimed at reducing domestic burning emissions. The system combined dense air quality (AQ) monitoring, postcode-level PM2.5 data, and behaviorally informed SMS/email alerts discouraging burning during poor air quality episodes. A sequential mixed-methods design included pre- and post-intervention surveys (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;49) and follow-up interviews (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;14). Over four weeks of use, 84% of participants (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;41) reported avoiding burning at least once on receipt of an alert. Among those providing quantitative estimates of burning behavior (n&#x2009;=&#x2009;47), 606 total hours of avoided burning were reported. AQ literacy also increased significantly among participants completing both surveys (paired t-test: t(40)&#x2009;=&#x2009;2.04, p &lt;0.05), with mean scores rising from 7.9 to 8.6 (out of 12). Using the Integrated Behavioral Model for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (IBM-WASH), qualitative findings indicate that engagement was shaped by contextual factors (including energy costs and regulatory perceptions), psychosocial factors (including trust, self-efficacy and health concerns), and technological factors (including alert timing and perceived sensor proximity). Although recruitment was low relative to the wider burning population, the findings indicate that voluntary, hyper-local alert systems may support behavior change and improvements in AQ literacy among engaged users. 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spelling 2026-05-11T15:58:17.4575019 v2 71789 2026-04-23 Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales e8d0f85a0d2762328c906c75b1d154b7 0000-0002-0025-0881 Menna Price Menna Price true false ac9a28ab033f55f1a469ab76e12feb96 0000-0002-0079-3149 Ian Walker Ian Walker true false 46dfc22d7468f247c390ba0c6cd8fba6 Paul Lewis Paul Lewis true false 1484553afa040ab3010d07c2c8742d7e Kori Sunter Kori Sunter true false 2026-04-23 PSYS Burning solid fuels for home heating is a major source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and associated health risks across Europe. This article reports findings from a pilot study of a voluntary ‘burn alert’ system in Swansea, Wales, aimed at reducing domestic burning emissions. The system combined dense air quality (AQ) monitoring, postcode-level PM2.5 data, and behaviorally informed SMS/email alerts discouraging burning during poor air quality episodes. A sequential mixed-methods design included pre- and post-intervention surveys (n = 49) and follow-up interviews (n = 14). Over four weeks of use, 84% of participants (n = 41) reported avoiding burning at least once on receipt of an alert. Among those providing quantitative estimates of burning behavior (n = 47), 606 total hours of avoided burning were reported. AQ literacy also increased significantly among participants completing both surveys (paired t-test: t(40) = 2.04, p <0.05), with mean scores rising from 7.9 to 8.6 (out of 12). Using the Integrated Behavioral Model for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (IBM-WASH), qualitative findings indicate that engagement was shaped by contextual factors (including energy costs and regulatory perceptions), psychosocial factors (including trust, self-efficacy and health concerns), and technological factors (including alert timing and perceived sensor proximity). Although recruitment was low relative to the wider burning population, the findings indicate that voluntary, hyper-local alert systems may support behavior change and improvements in AQ literacy among engaged users. Meaningful population-level emission reductions are therefore likely to depend on integrating such systems within broader regulatory and public information strategies, alongside measures to address household energy pressures. Journal Article Environmental Management 76 5 171 Springer Nature 0364-152X 1432-1009 Air quality; Air pollution; Domestic burning; Voluntary regulation; IBM-WASH 1 5 2026 2026-05-01 10.1007/s00267-026-02463-8 COLLEGE NANME Psychology School COLLEGE CODE PSYS Swansea University Another institution paid the OA fee This study was funded by the Welsh Government Local Air Quality Management Fund. 2026-05-11T15:58:17.4575019 2026-04-23T14:50:26.5110414 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences School of Psychology James Heydon 0000-0001-5826-3848 1 Menna Price 0000-0002-0025-0881 2 Ian Walker 0000-0002-0079-3149 3 Paul Lewis 4 Rohit Chakraborty 0000-0002-1063-2330 5 Caitlin Bunce 0009-0003-9156-5313 6 Kori Sunter 7 71789__36704__a786975bd285455b866c834d57c5f191.pdf 71789.VOR.pdf 2026-05-11T15:54:54.7340982 Output 1596166 application/pdf Version of Record true © The Author(s) 2026. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. true eng http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
spellingShingle Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
Menna Price
Ian Walker
Paul Lewis
Kori Sunter
title_short Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
title_full Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
title_fullStr Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
title_full_unstemmed Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
title_sort Reducing Domestic Wood Burning through Voluntary Air Quality Alerts: An IBM-WASH Evaluation of a Pilot Intervention in Wales
author_id_str_mv e8d0f85a0d2762328c906c75b1d154b7
ac9a28ab033f55f1a469ab76e12feb96
46dfc22d7468f247c390ba0c6cd8fba6
1484553afa040ab3010d07c2c8742d7e
author_id_fullname_str_mv e8d0f85a0d2762328c906c75b1d154b7_***_Menna Price
ac9a28ab033f55f1a469ab76e12feb96_***_Ian Walker
46dfc22d7468f247c390ba0c6cd8fba6_***_Paul Lewis
1484553afa040ab3010d07c2c8742d7e_***_Kori Sunter
author Menna Price
Ian Walker
Paul Lewis
Kori Sunter
author2 James Heydon
Menna Price
Ian Walker
Paul Lewis
Rohit Chakraborty
Caitlin Bunce
Kori Sunter
format Journal article
container_title Environmental Management
container_volume 76
container_issue 5
container_start_page 171
publishDate 2026
institution Swansea University
issn 0364-152X
1432-1009
doi_str_mv 10.1007/s00267-026-02463-8
publisher Springer Nature
college_str Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
department_str School of Psychology{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Psychology
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description Burning solid fuels for home heating is a major source of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and associated health risks across Europe. This article reports findings from a pilot study of a voluntary ‘burn alert’ system in Swansea, Wales, aimed at reducing domestic burning emissions. The system combined dense air quality (AQ) monitoring, postcode-level PM2.5 data, and behaviorally informed SMS/email alerts discouraging burning during poor air quality episodes. A sequential mixed-methods design included pre- and post-intervention surveys (n = 49) and follow-up interviews (n = 14). Over four weeks of use, 84% of participants (n = 41) reported avoiding burning at least once on receipt of an alert. Among those providing quantitative estimates of burning behavior (n = 47), 606 total hours of avoided burning were reported. AQ literacy also increased significantly among participants completing both surveys (paired t-test: t(40) = 2.04, p <0.05), with mean scores rising from 7.9 to 8.6 (out of 12). Using the Integrated Behavioral Model for Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (IBM-WASH), qualitative findings indicate that engagement was shaped by contextual factors (including energy costs and regulatory perceptions), psychosocial factors (including trust, self-efficacy and health concerns), and technological factors (including alert timing and perceived sensor proximity). Although recruitment was low relative to the wider burning population, the findings indicate that voluntary, hyper-local alert systems may support behavior change and improvements in AQ literacy among engaged users. Meaningful population-level emission reductions are therefore likely to depend on integrating such systems within broader regulatory and public information strategies, alongside measures to address household energy pressures.
published_date 2026-05-01T07:41:42Z
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