Charcoal Vs. Gas Grill: Which Is Better For The Environment?

With summer now in full swing, many of us are heading outside to do a little cooking by fire. Barbeque season has arrived, and with it, the decision about how to do it in the greenest way possible. Step 1: choosing the greenest fuel.

It's pretty much a two-(hot) dog race when it comes to grilling hardware: gas vs. charcoal. There are a few electrical grills on the market, but they're harder to come by, and, as we'll see below, aren't nearly as efficient as their other competitors. But that doesn't make the decision crystal clear.

The basic issue is this: charcoal is dirtier, but can come from renewable resources; gas has a smaller carbon footprint, but is derived from non-renewable fossil fuels. Most charcoal is a funky amalgamation of things like sawdust, corn starch and lighter fluid; when it's burned, it can result in 105 times more carbon monoxide than burning propane and lots of harmful volatile organic compounds. But, "real" charcoal, also commonly known as "chunk charcoal," doesn't have the nasty additives, and burning it is carbon neutral. So let's look a little more closely at the numbers.

When it comes to carbon emissions, gas-powered grills win in a landslide. Tristam West, a researcher with the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory, compared the carbon output of gas, charcoal and electric powered grills when producing 35,000 Btu's per hour, a typical industry baseline. West's calculations showed that gas produced 5.6 pounds of carbon dioxide each hour, compared to 11 pounds for charcoal. As mentioned above, electrical grills produce a whopping 15 pounds of carbon dioxide for every hour at 35,000 Btu's, so aren't the best choice from the carbon perspective.

After all this, here's the bottom line: go for gas. Lump charcoal is becoming increasingly available, but often comes from thousands of miles (or even multiple continents) away, which negates some of its carbon benefits; until it's readily available from local sources, the efficiency of gas wins out. Stay tuned for more tips on green grilling, and happy barbequing!

Difficulty level: Easy

Comments

[whiteboyblues]

What about wood chips?

[outnow]

Grilling meat is carcinogenic.

[ianrthorpe]

What's wrong with this post is you have not factored in the carbon emissions involved in making the bbq hardware.

Outdoor cooking should be done over an open fire, preferably using dried camel dung for fuel as they do in North Africa. Absolutely carbon neutral - and it gives the food an interesting flavour.

And just to encourage people towards a healthier, more environment friendly diet here's a link to warnings about the hazards of pharmaceutical remedies.
http://greenteeth.blog.co.uk/2008/06/29/the-misery-pill-obesity-depression-and-a-4380684

[jvarga]

Shipping camel dung to places without camels isn't carbon neutral.

[shpjohns]

Ugh... once again, this whole going green obsession continues to out do itself. Really, is this article freaking serious? Honestly? The problem is the MEAT. If you're questioning what kind of grill to use, don't eat the MEAT. That's the issue. Christ!

[Wilburrr]

Where does the article say you can only grill meat? Grilled vegetables are delicious, as is fish. I recommend tilapia, which is easily farmed, is not endangered, and represents a sustainable market.

[enveg01]

Let's just say that if you're cooking meat on the grill it doesn't really matter whether you're using coal or gas. Our meat addiction is the number one cause of global warming. Wake up already -- this post is ludicrous.

[midtown]

Oh, wow, this is really going to make a major difference when you compare the carbon emissions of just one of the 11,000 jets in the air every hour -- for an LA-NYC trip equivalent to an SUV driven eight hours a day fro 12 years -- or the massive seafloor volcanoes that are melting the north pole ice this summer.

[mlaiuppa]

Sorry. Sticking with the lump charcoal from my local CostCo. Don't know where it comes from (not China) and I know there are lump charcoal producers in the U.S. But I'm NOT burning propane (and ingesting the chemicals it leaves on my food.)

[midtown]

It doesn't leave chemicals on your food, unless you're pouring it on your steaks and doing nothing else. You need to ask someone who knows.

Why dont you ask the people at growingspaces.com who make those domes for growing food. They urge you to use propane instead of electricity in the dead of winter to warm the dome in extreme cold because "your plants will love you."

But I agree with you about lump charcoal because I like that flavor even though the smoke is carcinogenic.

[Wilburrr]

"Using electricity to heat water is like using a chain saw to cut butter."

Lighter fluid comes from fossil fuels. There are cannisters available into which you stack charcoal and light it from the bottom with old newspaper. No lighter fuel required.

[alguien]

all i can say is that when my neighbors have a barbecue and use their charcoal grill, i can't be out in my own backyard because the fumes from their lighter fluid make me quite ill.

[ivorytower54]

grow a sack. you're a wus.

[midtown]

The fumes from their lighter fuel?!? What do you think burns?

God, the stupidity of some people.

[trinity]

Buy them an electric starter...plug it in for 10 minutes and it lights the charcoal without the need for lighter fluid or charcoal with fluid (Matchlight charcoal).

[LCRover001]

Tell them to buy Matchlite, no starter fluid needed.

Also many people use way more charcoal brickets than are needed. You only need enough to place heat under what is cooking. 1 bag of charcoal should be enough to cook out 4 to 5 times.

[Tpatrick]

The amount of carbon dioxide released per watt of electricity used is dependent on the method of electrical production. Coal plants release the most carbon dioxide per watt, natural gas plants release less and wind turbines and solar panels release zero. If your electric grill is being run by the solar panel on your garage then the electric grill wins this contest easily.

[OrionGal]

Wow, I like the idea of a grill being run by the solar panel on your garage, or perhaps an individual home wind turbine.

Engineers -- idea here !