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A UK council has sparked controversy by proposing a ban on wood-burning stoves with penalties of £300 for those caught breaching the measures. The plans would expand three existing smoke-controlled neighbourhoods across Norwich, Norfolk, in a bid to improve air quality. In a motion tabled by the local authority, Green Party councillor Hannah Hoechner said domestic wood burners had become a major source of air pollution, causing "thousands of deaths and serious illness each year".

"Clean air is a right for everyone in Norwich, and no one should be exposed to harmful air pollution because of where they live," Ms Hoechner said. "Protecting and improving air quality is a matter of justice." Residents reacting to Norfolk Live's reporting on the proposals disputed the logic of the environmental measures, however, arguing that "wood was around before electricity".

"City people choosing to use their fireplace two or three times a year isn't the problem," Marley Pullinger wrote. "It's car exhaust from all the urban driving, including people idling engines in personal cars on residential streets."

Kelly Walker added: "It's a basic human right to sit by a fire in your own home."

"Sort out the massive energy bills, then people wouldn't have to have wood burners," Paul Gant suggested.

The proposals would effectively ban people across Norwich from burning wood indoors, except for certain heating systems.

Residents would still be able to burn "smokeless" fuels under the plans, including anthracite, semi-anthracite and 284 others.

The motion calls for the council to support the eventual phasing out of "non-essential" wood burning as part of a wider government consultation on the matter.

It doesn't call for any restrictions on fire pits, wood-fired ovens, or garden bonfires, though the Greens have backed greater awareness of the dangers associated with these practices.

The government consultation, which opened on January 22 and will run until March 19, described air pollution as "one of the largest environmental risks to human health" and pointed to the domestic burning of solid fuels such as wood as "a major source of PM2.5 emissions", which account for around 20% of the UK's total harmful pollutants.

According to research commissioned by Global Action Plan and Hertfordshire City Council, air pollution from the domestic burning of wood and coal contributes to almost 2,500 UK deaths each year.