A brochure for a sustainable solar boiler contains an
environmental claim. In summertime, the solar panels heat the solar
boiler. For the winter months, a log fire helps to heat the water
in the solar boiler, reducing gas consumption by 70%. The
brochure's text is enthusiastic, with a quip: "This
makes the whole Dutch environment, even the earth,
happier". The complainant found this unacceptable: logs
give off particulates and are therefore harmful rather than
environmentally friendly. A full debate ensued. The advertiser
relied on the fact that Brussels was a proponent of timber fuel as
a responsible alternative to coal- fired power stations. Wood
burners and pellet-fired power stations received government
subsidies in the Netherlands. The advertiser qualified the
objection based on particulates: logs account for just 0.5% of
particulate emissions in the Netherlands.
