Do You Know What's in Your Natural Gas? This Small Study Wanted The Answer

Natural gas is seen as an alternative to coal and oil. Methane is the choice of fuel for green-washed markets.

Methane is a serious pollutant because it releases less carbon dioxide than other gasses. Natural gas can be delivered to our homes with many unpleasant guests.

The mix of chemicals being piped into our kitchens, basements, and living rooms for cooking and heating was teased out by researchers from across the US state of Massachusetts.

It should give us pause to depend so much on methane as a low pollutant energy source.

Jonathan Buonocore, a health scientist with the Harvard Chan Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment, is one of the authors of the study.

The same chemicals are likely to be found in leaking gas distribution systems.

Carbon with hydrogen atoms is called methane. Near large deposits of oil and coal, it forms easily.

It's small size makes it a handy source of fuel that can be easily piped into homes and factories.

At least the clean version. Methane can leak from almost any part of the transport process.

Drew Michanowicz says that natural gas is a major source of methane that is driving climate change.

Most people don't realize that when natural gas leaks in our homes it can contain air pollutants that can be harmful to our health.

Fossil fuel deposits and other sources of methane aren't always pure. There are a lot of simple carbon blocks mixed with a lot of longer chains of hydrocarbons.

The complex recipe of freshly mined includes volatile organic compounds, aromatics, and non-organic materials.

Not all of these compounds are bad for us, but a good portion, including many of the aromatics, can raise the risk of cancer in sufficient doses, while also providing a starting point for reactions that generate atmospheric particulates and pollutants.

How many of the more troublesome substances remain in our homes has never been explained. Gas providers in the US keep a close eye on their products to make sure they meet standards.

It is harder to accurately judge the composition of the gas we burn because these methods don't track large carbon molecule.

In the Greater Boston area, the researchers collected 234 samples of natural gas over the course of a year. A detailed analysis of the samples showed a lot of variation.

There were hundreds of unique compounds, of which 21 were considered hazardous by the federal government.

They measured the concentration of odorants used to draw attention to the scentless gas. Some of the small leaks in our homes could be too faint to smell.

It's enough of a wake-up call that the study didn't go as far as to connect leaks or exposure to natural gas with health problems or calculate the potential impact on the environment.

"Policymakers and utilities can better educate consumers about how natural gas is distributed to homes and the potential health risks of leaking gas appliances and leaking gas pipes under streets."

The research was published in a journal.