A new research has shown that the gas emitted from household stoves and ovens does not only pose a threat to public health but also has a much more significant impact on the climate crisis than was previously believed.
The study, which was undertaken by scientists at Stanford University, found the emissions from gas stoves in US homes have the same climate-warming impact as that of half a million gasoline-powered cars — far more than scientists have previously estimated.
A community engagement coordinator for Sane Energy, a non-profit climate justice group that was not involved in the research, Lee Ziesche said that the new study confirmed what environmental advocates had been saying for over a decade now, which is that there was no such thing as clean gas.
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“From the drilling well to the stoves in our kitchens, fracked gas is harming our health and warming the planet, “he said.
Scientists say that Methane, which is the main component of natural gas, is a potent planet warmer and is around 80 times more powerful in the short term than carbon dioxide.
The study further found that in homes without range hoods, or with poor ventilation, the concentration of harmful nitrogen oxides — a by-product of burning natural gas — can reach or surpass a healthy limit within minutes, especially in homes with small kitchens.
The study estimated that stoves release 0.8% to 1.3% of their natural gas into the atmosphere as unburned methane and that Gas stoves and ovens leak significant amounts of planet-warming methane whether they are on or off.
Lead study author, Eric Lebel said that may not sound like much but it is a “really big number” when added to the amount of methane that is released during the production and transmission of the gas itself.
“If someone says they don’t use their stove, and so they’re not actually emitting any methane, well, that’s actually not true because most of the stoves that we measured had at least a slow bleed of methane while they were off,” Lebel said.
