The jury is out. Many municipalities around the country, starting in California, have banned or are considering banning natural gas heating and cooking from new construction, claiming that it is not a renewable energy source and that gas emits potentially unhealthy fumes in the home. Massachusetts recently passed a law calling for “make-up air” ventilation for gas stoves. That means you must install a powerful vent hood plus a system that pulls in fresh outdoor air in equal volume to what the hood is venting. Induction cooking requires far less hood ventilation to capture steam and cooking smoke than gas cooking because it does not generate as much heat or burn fuel in an open flame.
And is induction, which operates with electricity, better for the planet? While gas is not considered a renewable resource, neither is electricity at this time. Only 20 percent of the electricity now generated in the United States is from renewable sources such as solar and wind power. The other 80 percent is still generated from coal, natural gas, nuclear power, and other nonrenewable sources. What’s more, home cooking makes up a relatively small portion of the power usage of a typical home.