Smell of cooking bad for environment, climate 'experts' say

A new claim to add to concerns over climate change is that cooking aromas may have a harmful influence on air quality. 

According to a new study conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), cooking activities are polluting the air though human-caused volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which researchers claim negatively impact the environment. 

“If you can smell it, there’s a good chance it’s impacting air quality,” researchers said. 

The multiyear study focused on three cities including Los Angeles, California; Las Vegas, Nevada; and Boulder, Colorado. 

“Over the years, we’ve measured all sorts of different VOCs across the US from different sources, like vehicles, wildfire smoke, agriculture, and consumer products,” wrote Matt Coggon, lead author of the study.  “We kept seeing a specific class of compound in the urban measurements, what we call long-chain aldehydes, that we couldn’t explain from these other sources.”  

Researchers said that Las Vegas, which has one of the greatest restaurant concentrations in the United States, has ongoing air quality issues, particularly around The Strip. According to NOAA, "cooking activities" accounted for an average of 21 percent of the total mass of VOCs found in Vegas' outdoor air, with ranges spanning 10 percent to 30 percent. 

Pasadena, California, and Los Angeles also had excessive levels, according to NOAA. 

In summary, scientists wrote that cooking-related air pollution is significantly underreported and may be responsible for about 25 percent of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in cities. Inside homes, the issue is far more serious, researchers said. 

“It’s crucial to have the full picture of emissions and sources to help policymakers understand the effectiveness of their decisions,” said Coggon. 

It’s unclear how the findings might impact future climate policies. The President Biden has said that climate change is “the existential threat to humanity.” On the other hand, former President Donald Trump has continuously denounced climate change hysteria.