Smoke control area expansion

Open for comments from Monday 27 January to Sunday 20 April 2025.

The Environment Act 2021 has given local authorities powers to review and implement Smoke Control Areas (SCA) into their district.

We are seeking the views of Cambridge residents and businesses on proposals to amend the boundary of the existing SCAs to cover the whole city, including whether to widen the scope of the legislation to include permanent residential moored vessels on the River Cam within the Cambridge City Council district boundary.

We are considering these changes to improve health. Smoke from chimneys contains tiny particles known as Particulate Matter (PM).

Solid fuel and wood burning is the largest single source of PM2.5 emissions in Cambridge. PM2.5 can travel deep into the lungs and cause or worsen numerous health conditions. 

Inside an SCA you can only burn wood using Defra-approved stoves, or you can use smokeless fuels in other stoves and open fires. This means you can still burn, but certain rules apply. This is to reduce air pollution from smoke and improve health.

There are currently three SCAs in Cambridge that cover the west and centre of the city, which were established in the 1960s. SCA rules do not currently apply to permanent residential moored vessels in these areas.

• Smoke control area map
• Streets in the smoke-control area

The council is considering revoking the existing smoke control orders and replacing them with a single smoke control order. This will cover the entire district and could include permanent residential moored vessels.