The American Gas Association misled the public on the health effects of burning gas for decades. Now, a coalition wants the Washington State Department of Health to set the record straight.

Nineteen groups signed a letter to the agency calling for it to detail the public health impacts from burning gas in homes and buildings.

Past president of the Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility Mark Vosslier said his organization and others wrote the letter because the Department of Health has an important role in informing the public about health risks.

"Now that we know about the health risks of burning gas for heating and cooking," said Vosslier, "it makes perfect sense the department of Health can take an active role in shifting us away from unhealthy practices toward healthier practices."

The effect of burning gas inside homes, such as from gas stoves, includes a 42% increase in asthma symptoms among kids because of exposure to pollutants such as nitrogen dioxide.

The American Gas Association says gas ranges are a minor source of nitrogen dioxide.

The groups that signed the letter to the Department of Health note burning gas also impacts outdoor air quality.

Ruth Sawyer - climate and clean energy organizer with Sierra Club Washington - said cleaner alternatives are available, and the state has committed to a completely clean energy grid by 2040.

"There's a whole diversity of sources of renewable and clean energy," said Sawyer, "that the state is going to be investing in over the next many years to transition our electricity to be fully clean and renewable."

Vossler said we should no longer put people at risk by burning gas.

"Making an effort to reduce both indoor and outdoor pollution will save lives," said Vosslier.

The Colorado Department of Transportation is investing nearly $32 million to help local governments and other stakeholders transition to electric vehicles, including adding new electric buses to transit fleets.

Matthew Inzeo, communications director with the Colorado Department of Transportation, believes this initial investment will help set the stage for towns and cities to continue to add more electric vehicles in future years.

"Even though we're talking about vehicles by the dozens, it also indicates that our local transit systems are now in a position where they're ready to take these cleaner vehicles into their fleets," he said.

The Roaring Fork Transportation Authority will replace ten diesel-fueled buses with battery-powered vehicles. Breckenridge will add seven, Winter Park and Avon will each add two, and Boulder, Fort Collins and Telluride will each add one new electric bus to their fleets. Nonprofits serving children and people with disabilities are also getting money to purchase electric vans.

Investments are also being made in the infrastructure required to power and maintain electric vehicles, including connecting new solar canopies to the electric grid, and adding more charging stations. Inzeo says these investments can help reduce dozens of trips currently made by car, and get polluting diesel buses off the roads.

"The technology has actually gotten to a place where they can be rolling around your city without polluting at all. That's an incredible win. And really just easy low-hanging fruit that we can finally go pick to make local streets and local communities have cleaner air," Inzeo continued.

Money for electric buses, new facilities and infrastructure comes from Colorado's Clean Transit Enterprise created in 2021, and settlement funds the state received from Volkswagen designed to offset the impacts of the company's diesel-emissions cheating scandal.


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New research suggests humans aren't the only ones experiencing negative effects from wildfire smoke.

Researchers are studying Ponderosa pines, which inhabit much of the western United States, and they're finding that smoke may be affecting trees and many more kinds of plants - including food crops.

Research co-author Delphine Farmer, a chemistry professor at Colorado State University, said they don't yet know the full extent of the effects of wildfire smoke on plant life, but they do know it can impact the economy in some surprising ways.

"Oregon has some amazing wine, and in the wine that's grown there, there are a lot of concerns about smoke taint," she said. "And that's when the gases and particles of smoke actually get into the grapes and impact the taste and flavor of the wine."

She said they've found that smoke can cause plants to close their pores and even pause photosynthesis. This may mean shorter and slower growing periods, with unpredictable consequences for crop growth and output. Farmer added that the best solution is to work to manage the effects of climate change.

While forest fires have been part of a healthy forest's life cycle for centuries, the rate and intensity of recent fires has ramped up. As Oregon faces yearly major wildfire seasons, Farmer said it's important to find ways to mitigate the smoke exposure.

"As we move to stronger effects of climate change, and global change induced by human activity, we know we are going to be seeing more of these wildfire events," she said. "And so, the best way to reduce smoke exposure - whether it's to humans or to plants - is really to reduce the number of wildfire events."

She added that human behavior led to this increase in wildfire smoke - and emphasized the smoke will, in turn, affect human behavior. She recommended that people advocate for better firefighting techniques for at-risk areas and promote better climate policies.


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Under the federal Clean Air Act, Kentucky is required to keep haze air pollution under control in Mammoth Cave National Park.

Critics said the state's current plan falls short. Coal-fired power plants are the driving cause of air pollution impairing visibility in the Commonwealth, according to the National Parks Conservation Association.

Ashley Wilmes, executive director of the Kentucky Resources Council, said the state's current Draft Regional Haze State Implementation Plan only considers two facilities as significant pollution emitters, despite evidence there are more.

"There has to be a detailed analysis of additional major polluters in Kentucky that are contributing to this haze," Wilmes asserted. "They did not do this analysis for other major coal plants, including Ghent and Mill Creek, Trimble Station and others."

The Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet hears virtual public comments on the plan tomorrow at 10 a.m. ET.

Ulla Reeves, clean air program director for the National Parks Conservation Association, said several major polluters in the region are contributing to poor air quality.

"We see in Kentucky that Mammoth Cave is actually one of the most polluted national parks in the entire country," Reeves pointed out. "It is surrounded by polluting facilities."

Bryon Gary, program attorney for the council, said advocates are asking the state to include additional pollutants and facilities, and address environmental justice impacts to surrounding communities. He added residents' input will be considered by the Environmental Protection Agency.

"The public will have the opportunity to give those comments," Gary noted. "Then at some later point, the Energy Environment Cabinet will develop a written response to comments that will be submitted to EPA, along with their final state implementation plan."

Exposure to the air pollution particles triggering haze can cause breathing problems, lung cancer, heart attacks and low birth weight in newborn babies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.