A member of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) proposed a ban on new natural gas stoves under the guise of combating childhood asthma.
Richard Trumka Jr., son of the late AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka, Sr., is behind this asinine proposal.
Trumka Jr. alluded to a new gas stove ban to Bloomberg, saying, “Any option is on the table. Products that can’t be made safe can be banned.”
He cited a December 2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health Report claiming gas stoves are responsible for nearly 13% of childhood asthma cases.
But these findings are suspect at best. Several listed coauthors are affiliated with groups pushing net-zero and decarbonization. Talor Gruenwald is a research associate with Rewiring America, a self-described “leading electrification nonprofit, focused on electrifying our homes, businesses, and communities.” Another listed author is Brady A. Seals, manager of the Rocky Mountain Institute’s Carbon-Free Buildings program (a backer of the study). Seals isn’t a scientist or health professional. Her RMI department advocates constructing zero-carbon buildings, retrofitting 5% of buildings each year, and ensuring “electric and efficient appliances.”
This, however, isn’t stopping climate alarmists from parroting these findings and accusing Republicans of “thrusting” gas stoves into the culture war.
The American Gas Association (AGA) rebuked the study, noting, “A December 2022 report in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health linking natural gas cooking with asthma is not substantiated by sound science. Any discussion or perpetuation of the allegations in this report which is funded by non-governmental organizations to advance their agenda to remove consumer energy choice and the option of natural gas is reckless.”
The AGA continued, “The authors conducted no measurements or tests based on real-life appliance usage, and ignored literature, including one study of data collected from more than 500,000 children in 47 countries that “detected no evidence of an association between the use of gas as a cooking fuel and either asthma symptoms or asthma diagnosis. Any allegation that gas stoves exceed standards set by the Environmental Protection Agency and the World Health Organization is patently false. Regulators, like the Consumer Products Safety Commission, should rely on real data and science not unsubstantiated claims of advocates. Attempts to generate consumer fears with baseless allegations to justify the banning of natural gas is a misguided agenda that will not improve the environment or the health of consumers and would saddle vulnerable populations with significant costs.”
Trumka’s comments immediately drew ire from lawmakers —including Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV). Manchin is chair of the powerful Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.
“This is a recipe for disaster. The federal government has no business telling American families how to cook their dinner. I can tell you the last thing that would ever leave my house is the gas stove that we cook on,” Manchin tweeted. “If this is the greatest concern that the Consumer Product Safety Commission has for American consumers, I think we need to reevaluate the commission.” Ouch.
In response to backlash, Trumka then insisted the phase-out would be voluntary.
“To be clear, CPSC isn’t coming for anyone’s gas stoves. Regulations apply to new products,” he said. “For Americans who CHOOSE to switch from gas to electric, there is support available – Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act which includes a $840 rebate.”
His boss, Chairman Alex Hoehn-Saric, swooped in to do damage control saying his agency wouldn’t ban gas stoves after all.
Let’s be clear: This isn’t about combating childhood asthma; this is about forcing electrification on all Americans – like with electric vehicles – to achieve net-zero under a whole of government approach. And they are enticing gullible consumers to ditch their gas stoves with a $840 rebate offered by the sham “Inflation Reduction Act.”
The crusade to ban natural gas stoves is foolish. 187 million Americans depend on this fuel daily. 40 million U.S. households currently use natural gas stoves. In the most available data from the U.S. Energy Information Agency (EIA), natural gas accounted for 38.4% of utility scale electricity generation. Since 1990, methane emissions have dropped precipitously (69%) thanks to natural gas use.
Natural gas stoves are also a preferred choice for professional chefs—a whopping 90% of them. One chef speaking out is frequent Fox News guest Andrew Gruel, the restaurant proprietor behind concepts like Slapfish, Big Pharm, Two Birds, and the forthcoming Calico Fish House in Huntington Beach, CA.
“I genuinely think we have completely lost our minds,” Chef Andrew Gruel said on Fox Business. “So the idea now is, is that if we want an end – and the end is obviously get rid of gas stoves, get rid of fossil fuels, everything has to be electric, renewable now – they’re going to create as many stories as they can and then try and piece together statistics that really have no connection to at least get the headline that everybody can glom onto.”
He jested, “I will be trapping myself within my stove and protesting until this gets out of the minds of the collective.”
Despite natural gas’s benefits and multiple uses, major Democrat-run cities insist on banning natural gas stoves to combat climate change. And in many areas, they’ve already implemented this misguided policy.
Americans, however, are seeing through this alarmism and won’t willingly abandon their modern appliances for inefficient ones.
Let our battle cry be this: My Kitchen, My Choice! Hands off our gas stoves.
China wants our natural gas. Their reserves are low. What better way to get gas companies to lobby for foreign gas sales than depleting our domestic demand? I’m certainly not giving mine up willingly. On our list of desires for our new home given to our realtor was it had to have a gas stove. Heat control is a must when we cook.
“The green energy group behind a study cited in Consumer Product Safety commissioner Richard Trumka Jr.’s call to ban gas stoves has partnered with the Chinese government to implement an “economy-wide transformation” away from oil and gas….” “So this green think tank, which is comprised of non-scientists, takes money from China, has a Red Chinese oligarch as board member, and participates in ongoing projects with China’s central planners, all under the rubric of “going green.”
Anyone smell anything stinky here?”
“Ever wondered who was behind that greenie push to ban gas stoves?” – Monica Showalter
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2023/01/ever_wondered_who_was_behind_that_greenie_push_to_ban_gas_stoves.html
It’s not surprising that an arrogant burocrat has unaccounted power to implement bullshit muses on a whim.
If Trump gets back in the Oval Office, he needs to take a flamethrower to the entire executive branch. Fire everyone who even hints of woke bullshit.
As an added bonus, he can use his business acumen to downsize our bloated gov’t. No need to refill every desk (same way Chicago Medical didn’t fill Michelle Osama’s useless, overpaid position when she left.)
This is a dumber crusade than climate change, as if that is possible. Look who supports this idiocy..aoc..tell her she is supposed to put food. not her head in the stove.
Banning something for political reasons is bad enough the fact they totally ignore the truth and the reasons for political reasons nothing to do with science or the truth its all about controlling our lives from cradle to grave the real reason the UN was founded
What it is REALLY about is the same reason they want everyone in electric vehicles, They can turn them off remotely.
“…”Regulations apply to new products,” he said. ““For Americans who CHOOSE to switch from gas to electric,… – a defacto ban, because Trumka’s saying you’ll only have one choice, electric, when you buy a new stove, so they’ll be eliminated by attrition. They can ‘help’ that along, by banning replacement parts for existing gas stoves. Another trick leftists use to defacto ban things, is by regulating them to the point that only the wealthy can afford them
Interestingly enough, I saw a post of pictures of AOC, nancy pelosi, and elizabeth “Gray Beaver” warren, all with gas stoves in their kitchens.
gas stoves don’t really break easily. I can imagine a second hand market for gas stoves, gas cars and all the other wonderful devices the left fears and hates.
New York is well on the way to implementing the destructive “net zero” agenda as a means for the Demo-Marxists to continue destroying what’s left of our state.
There are bills in our Legislature that will forbid oil and gas hookups in all new houses and buildings starting next year.
I don’t know of ANY of our state legislators of either party who oppose this insanity.
We are in worse shape than Commiefornia.
Got out of California when Newsom was elected and bought a wonderful property which, unfortunately, is all- electric. I can deal with almost everything EXCEPT cooking on the lousy electric stove No instant 0n-off, and the oven takes forever to preheat as well. I’m planning to install a propane range, since natural gas is not available on my private road.
I lived in a rural area of a northern state where we frequently had power outages during severe storms. IF we had our electricity restored it was usually not for at least a week. My home used propane gas, electricity and wood. When the power was out, I could still cook because of the gas and heat because of the wood. I now live more urban but still have gas/electricity. I can cook and heat part of my home during an outage but the rooms with purely electric heaters are very cold in the winter. Given the situation, IF they were to ban the gas/propane appliances, I guess the gas fireplace comes out and a wood stove goes in? IF they convince people to give up their gas appliances (which are also less expensive than electric appliances) HOW are we supposed to manage in the power outages especially in the frigid winters? Oh, yeah…they don’t care about us, do they?
The whole point of Environmentalism is to SACRIFICE you to Goddess Gaia. The New Aztecs want you!
What happened that Trumka got this position? Does he have advanced degrees in public health or any kind of science? Is he author of any peer-reviewed journal articles on the topic? Did he just pull this topic out of his butt? Manchin is right- this commission is a great waste of taxpayer money. End it. Any consumer product that is dangerous will cause enough lawsuits that the manufacturer will discontinue the product. Let the marketplace decide what’s useful and what’s not.
Anyway they can control our lives the CPSC needs new leadership Trumka should get the boot
Cal. Gov. Newsom: “hee hee – I already banned new gas water heaters for homes starting 7 years from now – have fun freezing in the shower when the grid goes down, suckers – but not me and my comrades in Sacramento – because we already built 4 new power generator plants to supply Sacramento county only whenever the main electric grid goes down!! Cheers!!”
Newsom is a idiot and he was reelected by useful idiots
I wonder why everyone keeps forgetting about vote fraud? Is it that unthinkable and frightening? Sure California has its share of idiot voters. But today we do NOT know who is in office legitimately and who isn’t.