In the end, the head of the US product safety agency had only one way out: to pull the plug. In a figurative sense, of course, because a gas stove naturally has no plug. One of the commissioners of the “US Consumer Product Safety Commission” (CPSC), as the authority is called, started the quite explosive controversy on Monday, when he thought aloud about banning the installation of new gas stoves in the USA. They are suspected of polluting the air in the room with exhaust gases.
The majority of the liberal media immediately tried to explain to their readers that such a ban could have a positive effect not only on the climate in their own four walls, but also on the entire planet. Republicans, on the other hand, gratefully pounced on the news of President Joe Biden’s regulatory-mad agents who allegedly only wanted to curtail American liberties.
Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson vowed on Twitter to “never” give out his gas stove. “If the lunatics in the White House want to get my gas stove, they’re going to have to pry it out of my cold dead fingers. Come and get it!!”
For the Republicans, such news fits into the narrative that the Democrats want to pursue climate protection at any price and especially on the backs of the socially disadvantaged. Gas stoves are still widespread in the USA: around a third of households nationwide cook with them. Although gas stoves cost slightly more to buy than electric stoves, they are up to 30 percent cheaper to operate in the land of cheap natural gas, depending on the region.
Since 2019, the first ban on gas stoves in the USA has been in the city of Berkeley, California
However, there was never any talk of the violent removal of stoves that had already been installed. Rather, Rich Trumka Jr., one of several commissioners of the product safety agency, had only announced further studies on gas stoves. In the next few months, he wants to have it clarified in more detail how harmful these are to the climate, indoor air and health. He mentioned – as a conceivable measure – the ban.
If Trumka Jr. wanted to test whether the general public would accept such a ban, he was successful. So successful that his boss specified three days later that this had never been discussed. In general, his authority does not have the competence to issue such a ban.
The CPSC works in a similar way to such authorities in Europe: For example, it can issue safety regulations and standards for household appliances. And not only climate experts, but also health professionals have been pointing out for a long time that gas stoves do have disadvantages. Older models in particular, which are still widespread in the country with its ailing infrastructure, can emit environmental gases such as methane, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, as well as fine soot particles that damage the lungs. This can promote asthma, allergies and other complaints, especially in poorly ventilated rooms. This isn’t just a hypothetical problem: in the United States, the windows in many houses cannot be opened at all or only with great effort, and people rely entirely on air conditioning and ventilation systems.
That’s why the first ban on gas stoves in the USA, in the Californian city of Berkeley, has been in place since 2019. The states of New York and California are discussing similar moves, while other cities are considering tougher indoor air quality regulations that could also lead to a de facto ban.
However, the powerful natural gas lobby is fighting back as best it can. For decades she has worked to position gas as the fuel of fine dining. In full-page advertisements, she had chefs rave about how cooking with natural gas was “simply the most natural thing” and that working with fire was vital for her, “with live ammunition”. With success: seven states in which gas is produced recently passed laws that prohibit cities and municipalities from banning gas stoves on their territory.