Gas-burning stoves leak so much methane across the U.S.—most when the appliances are not even in use—that they have the same impact on our atmosphere as half a million cars, a study says
he gas-burning stoves loved by cooks leak so much methane across the U.S.—most when the appliances are not even in use—that they have the same impact on our atmosphere as half a million cars, according to a Stanford University study.
Stanford researchers analyzed indoor levels of both heat-trapping methane and nitrous oxides—pollutants that can trigger asthma and other breathing problems—and found surprising amounts of each seeping from stoves. The study, released Thursday, comes as communities nationwide debate whether to ban natural gas use in new buildings as part of the fight against climate change, and as the gas industry mobilizes to block such bans.
“Gas stoves warm the planet and release indoor air pollutants that you breathe–you get both,” senior author Rob Jackson, an environmental scientist at Stanford, said in an interview. Eliminating gas service for newly built homes makes sense, he said, “otherwise we’re locking in, has more than 80 times the global-warming potential of carbon dioxide for the first 20 years after it’s released into the atmosphere.
The researchers would like to expand the study to include more homes and stoves, since the pandemic limited testing. Tests involved sealing off part of each kitchen to avoid emissions from gas-burning furnaces or water heaters elsewhere in the house. The researchers worked with real estate agents to find empty homes or rented them on Airbnb. The study included 18 brands of stoves, ranging in age from 3 to 30 years.
“The trickier question is how to swap out older stoves,” Jackson said. “I would hope for all the readers, their next stove is
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