Thousands of deaths from heating and cooking systems

‘More than road accidents in Western Europe’: New study links 6,000 annual deaths in Eastern Europe to heating and cooking systems

Combustion heating and cooking cause as many carbon monoxide deaths in Eastern Europe(1) like road accidents in Western Europe, respectively a new Coolproducts report by the European Environment Agency (EEB). Fossil fuel-based systems also result in 900-1,800 annual fire injuries. The results highlight the urgent risks to public health and safety posed by heating with fossil fuels and biomass in European homes, highlighting the need for a clear EU plan to move away from combustion technologies.

Combustion-based heating and cooking technologies present significant risks compared to their electric equivalents

The EEB report shows that combustion-based heating and cooking technologies pose significant risks compared to their electric equivalents, including equipment failure, carbon monoxide poisoning and fire accidents. Currently, 83% of European homes still rely on fossil fuel and biomass heating and cooking technologies(2). This not only leads to unstable energy bills, but also contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions from the community block and an alarming rate of preventable accidents and deaths.

The authors estimate that the numbers could be even higher, as the figures are based only on countries with reliable data. Injuries are also likely to be underreported, as many people do not reach hospitals. The actual figures for accidents and injuries are most likely much higher.

However, in 2022, 3.2 billion euros from public money(3) have still been allocated to fossil fuel heating subsidies by national governments, despite clear evidence linking these technologies to Europe’s social, energy and environmental crises. According to the findings of this report, this money will fund future deaths.

Public health and safety concerns

Although pan-European data are limited, the analysis of national data from 8 Member States(4) highlighted a clear trend in public health and safety concerns:

• In Eastern Europe, the death rate from carbon monoxide poisoning is significantly higher than in the rest of the EU, with 5,000-6,000 deaths recorded in 2021 alone.
• In Europe, approximately 900 to 1,800 injuries per year can be attributed to fossil fuel heating and cooking technologies.
• In Poland, 27.6% of accidental domestic fires are caused by fossil fuel heating. In 2023, firefighters recorded 4,350 interventions, in which 53 people were fatally poisoned by carbon monoxide and 1,468 were poisoned.
• In Romaniain 2022, there were 305 adult deaths, 10 child deaths, 702 adult injuries and 40 child injuries related to fires caused by combustion technologies.
• Between 2018-2023, Sweden recorded at least 6,572 fires and fire incidents caused by fuel-based heating and cooking.
• In Italy, between 2014 and 2019, a total of 1,743 gas-related injuries were recorded, with 97% of these resulting from use by end customers.

Investing in clean, renewable and cheaper alternatives

Davide Sabbadin, Deputy Director of Policy for Climate and Energy at EEBstated: “It is unthinkable that public money should continue to support combustion technologies that pose significant risks to public health right in people’s homes. Investing in clean, renewable and cheaper alternatives such as solar power and heat pumps is no longer just a desirable thing, but a moral obligation for policy makers.”

The Coolproducts report highlights the need to prioritize funding to accelerate the transition to electric heating and cooking solutions, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe, to leverage the Social Climate Fund to support middle- and low-income households that may face upfront costs raised Heating and cooking should not put families at risk. Electric and solar technologies are more than ready for policy makers to commit to creating safer, cheaper and cleaner homes across Europe.

(1)Definition and regions of Eastern, Central and Western Europe applied to the extracted data set

(2)Energy consumption for heating in Europe by energy source

(3)Coolproducts study “Green heating for all”

(4)The following Member States are the main countries investigated due to the availability of multi-year data: Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Poland, Romania, Sweden. Instant data is also available for Portugal, Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary, Greece, Bulgaria, Lithuania and Cyprus.