The headline that has been floating around since this morning sounds like a threat to anyone with stoves and fireplaces, even if the resolutions on the matter tell a more limited story. The deadline of 15 October 2026 concerns a specific portion of wood and pellet systems, and only in Lombardy. The same rules as before apply to the home stove, but not everyone knows them.
What really changes from October 15th
From today the requirements set by regional resolution 3649 of 2024 become applicable for civil biomass heating systems with hearth power exceeding 35 kW. These are more stringent emission and system requirements, designed for systems of a certain size. The threshold must be checked in the booklet, or asked from the maintenance technician, because it is he who establishes whether the appliance is included in the novelty. A second stage will arrive on October 15, 2027, when Resolution 4720 of 2025 will extend new requirements to biomass boilers up to 35 kW. Boilers, precisely, so reading that date as an expiration for all stoves would be a mistake.
The rules that already apply to stoves and fireplaces
The underlying criterion remains the environmental class, expressed in stars (from one to five) by ministerial decree 186 of 2017, in which the presence of more stars corresponds to less fine dust. In Lombardy, from 1 January 2020, it is forbidden to use biomass generators from scratch, one or two stars, while each new installation must have at least four. The Region provides for some exclusions and exceptions, which must be verified on a case-by-case basis. If you don’t remember the class of your appliance you can look for it in the booklet, if it is missing, start from the manufacturer’s documentation, with brand, model and power and search online.
Fines and checks
Anyone who does not comply with the regional provisions risks a fine of 500 to 5,000 euros, provided for in article 27, paragraph 4, of regional law 24 of 2006. The checks are the responsibility of the Provinces in the Municipalities under 40 thousand inhabitants and the larger Municipalities, as part of the checks on the heating systems.
The other regions of the Po Valley
The Lombard squeeze did not arise out of nowhere and we must go back to 9 June 2017, the date on which the Ministry of the Environment and the Regions of Lombardy, Piedmont, Veneto and Emilia-Romagna signed the Po Basin Agreement in Bologna. Among the measures against smog, the agreement includes domestic wood-fired generators. The agreement envisaged two steps: the first stopped the installation of devices under three stars and the use of those under two, the second raised the bar to four stars for new ones and to three for those already switched on. Each Region has implemented the agreement with its own provisions, with differences on dates, exemptions and temporary measures on smog days. In short, if you live in Piedmont, Veneto or Emilia-Romagna you would do well to check the rules of your territory.
