Study: Gas stoves worse for climate than previously thought

By SETH BORENSTEIN
AP Science Writer

A new study has found that gas stoves are worse for the climate than previously thought. The study by California researchers that was published in Thursday’s journal Environmental Science & Technology found that more than 2.6 million tons of methane leaks into the air from gas stoves in the United States even when they aren’t running. That’s on top of heat-trapping emissions from gas stoves when they are on. The study also found potentially harmful nitrogen oxide emissions from gas stoves when they are in use. Researchers put plastic around stoves in more than 50 kitchens to test what came out. They say they were most surprised by the leaks from when the stoves weren’t on.