Why Stoves Just Became a Kitchen Table Topic in America

New research linking childhood asthma to gas stoves has suddenly brought a lot of attention to how we power our home appliances. The good news: electric solutions are here that don’t involve dirty fossil fuels – and new rebates make the shift easier.

How are gas stoves unhealthy?

• A new study found that gas stoves are responsible for 12.7% of childhood asthma in the United States.
• Gas stoves can emit heavy doses of nitrogen dioxide, a form of air pollution especially known to trigger asthma and other breathing problems.
• The astounding health impacts are broadly felt because gas stoves are in about 35% of U.S. households.
• Gas stoves aren’t only polluting while we’re cooking. Research from Stanford last year found that more than three-quarters of methane emissions from gas stoves leaked when they were turned off.
• And in the big picture, gas appliances and the gas lines that feed them are terrible for our climate, accounting for about 10% of climate pollution in the United States.

What’s the fix?

Thankfully, this isn’t a problem without a solution.

• Modern induction stoves using electricity have come onto the market, offering quicker, hotter cooking experiences with no side of gas pollution.
• A firehose of federal funding in the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act is available to help people upgrade to induction and ditch dirty gas.
• The IRA provides a tax rebate up to $840 for an electric (including induction) stove, cooktop, range, or oven. Money is also available for upgrading electrical panels.

What is Earthjustice doing?

• Earthjustice is working toward the goal of electrifying everything and powering it all with 100% clean energy. This is both a climate necessity and a major public health opportunity.
• We have been working to electrify homes — including cook stoves and other appliances — since this movement began. Our team worked on a city ordinance to shift to all electric new homes in Berkeley in 2019 and San Francisco in 2020.
• The movement to electrify everything and shift us to healthy homes has spread quickly, with dozens of cities across the United States opting for all-electric new housing.
• Our attorneys are working in states like California, New York, Maryland, and Washington to usher us into an electric, healthy era for our homes, and our legislative team has been busy in D.C. securing funding for this transition.

It’s time to step into an electric future. Learn more about the billions in support from the federal government coming to households this year to electrify homes, delivering clean air benefits to families while protecting our climate.