Eleven attorneys general, including Oregon’s Ellen Rosenblum, have asked a federal consumer watchdog agency to gather more information on the health hazards posed by gas stoves and establish rules to protect consumers.
In a letter sent Monday, Rosenblum and her colleagues asked the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to develop either voluntary standards or mandatory regulations like venting and shut-off valves that will reduce emissions of harmful pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter from gas stoves.
Their letter, sent in response to the commission’s gas stove fact-finding process, says the emissions disproportionately impact lower-income people who live in smaller apartments with poor ventilation or use gas stoves as a source of heat. They’re also especially harmful to children, the elderly and people with respiratory illnesses, though that conclusion has generated hot political debate.
Among the findings they cite:
– A recent study conducted in conjunction with the New York Public Housing Authority that found cooking with gas stoves resulted in indoor air concentrations of nitrogen dioxide that exceeded Environmental Protection Agency standards set for outdoor air to protect sensitive groups.
– Studies that show children living in a home with a gas stove are 42 percent more likely to experience asthma symptoms than children who live in homes with an electric stove and a recent peer-reviewed paper that found roughly 13% of childhood asthma (about one in eight cases) in the U.S. can be attributed to gas stove use.
– A Multnomah County report from last November that recommended transitioning away from gas stoves because their emissions can be especially harmful to children.
In January, a member of the Consumer Product Safety Commission suggested his agency might take regulatory action on gas stoves, prompting a sharp rebuke from the gas industry, Republican lawmakers and from consumers professing love for their gas stoves.
The commission later said it did not have immediate plans to ban gas stoves.
But the dilemma surrounding gas appliances has lingered as the federal government, states and local governments move toward electric power to reduce greenhouse gas emissions – including requiring consumers or offering incentives to swap gas stoves and furnaces for electric convection ovens and heat pumps.
The consumer commission is charged with protecting the public from dangerous products, including by issuing and enforcing standards or banning products. It has used its authority to develop standards for children’s toys containing lead or portable generators that emit carbon monoxide.
Gas stoves now are not required to meet any safety or performance standards related to emissions, other than curbing carbon monoxide concentrations. The attorneys general say the commission should require more expansive consumer warning labels about gas stove pollution and launch a public education campaign to increase awareness of the emissions associated with gas stoves.
The letter urges the commission to mandate proper ventilation of gas stoves, since many state and local building codes don’t require range hoods to vent outdoors. And because studies show that people often don’t use their vents, the letter urges the commission to require ones that automatically turn on every time a stove is used.
The officials also ask the commission to require automatic shut-off valves and pollution sensors to prevent stoves from leaking pollution when not in use.
In February, the city of Eugene became the first city in Oregon to ban natural gas appliances in new homes. But the ordinance proved controversial and is now on hold after opponents – funded largely by NW Natural, Oregon’s largest investor-owned gas utility – submitted enough signatures to put it to a citywide vote. A recent court decision has put another question mark on the future of the ordinance.
NW Natural spokesman David Roy said the utility is aware of the letter and the commission’s fact-finding process, but needs more time to evaluate the studies mentioned in the letter.
“We agree indoor air quality is an important issue that needs to be thoughtfully researched and assessed with sound science. A focus on objective technical information is key to safety. When assessing air quality and health risks, factors like accurate measurements and well-designed studies are critical,” Roy said in an emailed statement.
– Gosia Wozniacka; gwozniacka@oregonian.com; @gosiawozniacka
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