Quoted Text

Greenpoint BY MARGARET HARTLEY
Gas grill vs. charcoal debate raises some burning issues
Margaret Hartley is the Gazette’s Sunday and features editor. Send questions and comments to greenpoint@dailygazette.net.

    When my sister moved into a new house, her real estate agent gave her a huge gas grill.
    The size of the grill seemed to be proportioned to the size of her new home (which was proportioned to the size of her new family) because the same agent had given her a much smaller gas grill some years earlier, when she bought a little house for her then-smaller family.
    Maybe it’s because we never move that we had no gas grill, or maybe it’s because we’re cheap and gas grills are expensive. Or maybe it’s just that we tend to use a smoker instead of a grill for outdoor cooking, because we lived at the edge of the forest, where dead dry wood for fuel is free and abundant.
    Since my sister had no need for two gas grills, she gave us the smaller, original present a few years ago.
    We haven’t actually used it yet, because we never got around to getting a propane tank. (My sister figured she didn’t need two grills, but she thought a spare tank would be handy.)
    Lately I’ve been thinking more seriously about getting that tank, for two reasons. One is that we still haven’t gotten around to replacing the stove that broke last October and it’s been a little warm for the wood-fired stove in the house. The other is a report I heard recently about gas grills being a better for the environment than charcoal grills.
    The gas vs. charcoal debate has been going on as long as there have been gas grills. Part of the debate centers on what constitutes a true barbecue flavor, and the answer to that one is entirely up to you.
    Cost is another factor, since even a basic gas grill is a lot more expensive than the basic hibachi. That wasn’t an issue for us, since our grill was free, and filling a propane tank in the long run is cheaper than buying bags of charcoal briquets.
IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT
    Environmentally, gas grills seem to get the upper hand, although the debate is a little muddy. Charcoal grills emit more carbon, and lighter fluid contains volatile organic compounds, which cause smog. But charcoal is a renewable “biofuel” while propane is a nonrenewable fossil fuel. And some kinds of charcoal — lump vs. briquets, and those guaranteed to be made from sustainable forests — are better from an environmental standpoint. But also more expensive.
    Still, numerous studies, including one by the Environmental Impact Assessment Review, find that charcoal grilling produces about three times the carbon emissions as gas grilling to create the same amount of cooking heat. ..............>>>>................>>>>.............http://www.dailygazette.net/De.....r05001&AppName=1

Quoted Text

The gas vs. charcoal debate has been going on as long as there have been gas grills. Part of the debate centers on what constitutes a true barbecue flavor, and the answer to that one is entirely up to you.