For those of you firing up the grill this Fourth of July, I have some bad news.
Nationwide, the estimated 60 million barbecues held on the Fourth of July alone consume enough energy—in the form of charcoal, lighter fluid, gas, and electricity—to power 20,000 households for a year. That one day of fun, food, and celebration, says Tristram West, a research scientist with the U.S. Department of Energy, burns the equivalent of 2,300 acres of forest and releases 225,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide. It also produces other air pollutants — including a few that might surprise you.
The above information is from A guide to guilt-free grilling on the Sierra Club's website. I highly recommend reading it!
Just a few changes in your cooking style can make a difference. Here are some tips from the article:
1. Grilling with charcoal, the traditionalist's choice, gives off more health-harming carbon monoxide, particulate matter, and soot than other methods.
2. Reduce your exposure by choosing lean meats and trimming fat. Marinades made with vitamin- and antioxidant-rich citrus juices, olive oil, and herbs are tasty and may also prevent carcinogens from forming.
3. Using lump charcoal instead of briquettes. "Lump charcoal comes from a genuine tree and isn't ground up or processed in any way," explains Rob Bailis, a PhD student in the University of California at Berkeley's Energy and Resources Group.
4. Trade in your lighter fluid—which releases smog-forming VOCs—for a chimney charcoal starter. Just load charcoal into the chimney pipe, tuck in crumpled newspaper below, and light.
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