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Benzene, a compound linked with leukemia and other blood cancers, is leaking from gas stoves in Europe, a new study finds.
Benzene occurs naturally in crude oil and natural gas and can also be found in cigarette smoke. Because even low levels of benzene can raise the risk of cancer, the World Health Organization says there is no safe level of exposure.
For the new study, researchers at PSE Healthy Energy, a think tank based in California, examined dozens of stoves in Italy, the U.K., and the Netherlands, finding that 40 percent leaked gas while turned off. Not only did gas leaks produce measurable levels of benzene, according to the study, but in kitchens with large leaks, the level of exposure was worse than living with a smoker.
When researchers tested samples of unburned gas, they found benzene in every sample and generally at levels far greater than would be typical in the U.S. and Canada. Benzene levels were 8.6 times higher in Italy, 37 times higher in the U.K., and 66 times higher in the Netherlands, according to the study.
Making matters worse, researchers said, leaks were often difficult to detect. Because natural gas is odorless, gas providers typically mix in sulfur, which lends the smell of rotten eggs, making it possible to sniff out leaks. But in the U.K. and the Netherlands, researchers found, sulfur levels were so low that leaks producing significant levels of benzene could easily go undetected. The findings were published in Environmental Research Letters.
Scientists not affiliated with the new research said that benzene exposure from stoves appears comparable to other sources, such as road traffic, and poses less of a threat than other forms of air pollution. Still, said Alastair Lewis, of the University of York, “getting rid of gas appliances and electrifying instead is a clear win for indoor air quality, whether that is avoiding gas leaks or avoiding the combustion products from burning gas in homes.”
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