More aid to warm houses offered

Homeowners in Wairarapa will soon be eligible for more help improving insulation and clean heating in their homes _ and it could improve the air.
Greater Wellington Regional Council is offering a loan of up to $2600 for up to 1150 households in the region, on top of the Government's Warm Up New Zealand Heat Smart programme offered by the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority.
Regional council chairwoman Fran Wilde said the assistance would allow more people to take advantage of the EECA scheme, which is available for four years and started in July last year.
''Modern insulation systems and clean heating appliances mean that people shouldn't be living in cold and unhealthy homes. As well as health benefits, insulation also reduces heating costs and adds value to properties.
''This initiative also offers benefits in terms of reduced air pollution from open fires _ important in towns like Masterton and Greytown _ and lower greenhouse gas emissions,'' she said.
A regional council air-quality report late last year showed Masterton had the worst air quality in the region. Smoke from domestic fires was named as a significant culprit.
Regional council air-quality scientist Tamsin Mitchell told the Times-Age at the time: ''Because Wairarapa has two ranges the whole valley area does trap smoke, and then it gradually drifts down the valley overnight and moves away from Masterton down to Carterton and Featherston.''
About two-thirds of New Zealand homes have insufficient or no insulation, the EECA says, which wastes energy and can make the occupants sick.
Each residence in the Wellington region would be eligible for the $2600 loan (including GST), which would be paid back through a targeted rate against the property.
The scheme has a total spending cap of $3million a year and would not impose any extra cost on rates, the council said.
Under the EECA scheme, 188,500 homes are eligible for $347million of funding towards up to 60 per cent of insulation projects and up to $1200 of clean heating projects.
Uptake on the programme had been better than expected, seven months into the programme, EECA spokeswoman Tamara Lee said.
By the end of January, 3425 households in the greater Wellington region and about 30,000 houses throughout the country had been retro-fitted with either insulation or clean heating or both, with assistance from the programme, she said. ''It's well ahead of what we were planning to do in the first year.''