EPA’s Household Energy Work

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Introduction 

Around the world, 2.3 billion people lack access to clean cooking technologies and rely on burning solid fuels like wood, charcoal, and animal dung to cook and heat their homes, often with open fires, according to World Health Organization statistics. The EPA works with partners to expand access to, and sustained use of, clean cooking technologies with the goal of ensuring access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all, which is United Nations Sustainable Development Goal #7. 

Since 2002, the EPA has been a global leader in advancing clean and efficient household energy solutions, fostering partnerships and initiatives that have improved health, reduced air pollution and expanded access to cleaner cooking technologies. 

For more information about the health, climate and other impacts of household energy, see Understanding the issue: Household Energy and Clean Air 

 Promoting International Standards

A central component of the EPAs’ international efforts to promote the adoption of clean cooking technologies is developing and promoting the implementation of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards for evaluating clean cooking technology. ISO is a non-governmental organization that develops and publishes standards through international collaborative processes.  Clean cooking technology is rated on four key performance indicators:  fuel use/efficiency, total emissions, indoor emissions, and safety, and has since been superseded by the following standards. 

 There are currently six ISO standards and documents related to clean cooking that have been developed through ISO Technical Committee 285:  

Standardized testing protocols support international technology sharing and trade by building trust in consistent results between laboratories. The Voluntary Performance Targets can be adopted or adapted by any country through national policies. They enable countries to identify minimum performance levels for technologies specific to their national context.  

To promote countries’ adoption or adaptation and implementation of these standards, the EPA has worked closely with ISO, the Clean Cooking Alliance, the World Health Organization, the Pan American Health Organization and other partners to host Regional Standards Implementation Workshops. These events brought together government policy makers, lab testing experts, non-governmental organizations, and other stakeholders. As of 2024, four regional workshops have been held with stakeholders from 44 countries. During these workshops, each country delegation developed short, medium, and long-term action plans for adopting or adapting and then implementing the ISO standards and clean cooking initiatives in their country. The EPA and its partners continue to work with these country delegations to support their action plans.

Strengthening the Connection Between Cooking and Climate

The Clean Cooking and Climate Consortium  

The EPA is a founding member of the Clean Cooking and Climate Consortium (4C), a partnership led by the Clean Cooking Alliance that includes EPA and the following members: 

This group aims to promote the importance of clean cooking in reaching global climate goals.

Household Energy in Nationally Determined Contributions 

4C encourages country governments to include household energy goals in their Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement and provides evidence and guidance on how best to articulate, plan and meet those goals.   As of the 28th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28), 102 low-to-middle income countries have included household energy or clean cooking goals in their nationally determined contributions.  

4C has developed the following guidance documents and continues to offer technical support to country governments. 

Clean Cooking Carbon Methodology 

Carbon markets are an increasingly important source of funding for household energy projects around the world. In response to demand for a robust methodology to accurately account for carbon emission reductions from household energy projects, 4C has developed a new, Comprehensive Lowered Emissions Assessment and Reporting (CLEAR) Methodology for Cooking Energy Transitions, grounded in the best available science. The CLEAR methodology was developed through extensive consultation and engagement with the cooking and carbon community, with more than 250 stakeholders participating. To support adoption of this new methodology, 4C will provide guidance to ratings agencies and carbon credit buyers on using the methodology to engage in cooking projects in the carbon market. When adopted by carbon crediting registries, the methodology will provide greater credibility, transparency, and consistency to carbon crediting for clean cooking projects.  

Federal Partners

The EPA is the lead agency coordinating federal work on household energy in collaboration with the following U.S. government agencies through the Interagency Working Group on Clean Cooking: 

  • USAID – The U.S. Agency for International Development funds multiple household energy projects in Africa focused on decreasing deforestation caused by demand for charcoal, including in Malawi and Zambia. Through the promotion of low-emission alternative technologies and fuels, these projects reduce exposure to harmful air pollution.   
  • USDA - The U.S. Department of Agriculture promotes the use of biofuels to support American growers, especially ethanol, for cleaner cooking in Africa. 
  • DOE – The U.S. Department of Energy promotes transitions from polluting to clean and sustainable fuels and supports the Group of 20 (G20) Energy Ministerial commitments to clean cooking.   
  • USDFC – The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation partners with the private sector to finance solutions to the most critical challenges facing the developing world today, such as access to energy and clean cooking. 
  • NIH – The U.S. National Institutes of Health supports and conducts research and training on the health effects of household and ambient air pollution from cooking, as well as the science of scaling up cleaner cooking technologies. The overall aim of this effort is to improve health in the U.S. and around the world, especially in low- and middle-income countries where the disease burden from air pollution is greatest.

Other Partners

The EPA works in partnership with numerous international and local organizations and country governments, leveraging funding and expertise to design, implement, and execute household energy policies and projects.   

Some organizations working on household energy include:  

  • CCA – The Clean Cooking Alliance works with partners, including the EPA, to build a dynamic, inclusive, and financially sustainable clean cooking industry. The EPA also supports CCA’s work through a cooperative agreement.   
  • CCAC - The Climate and Clean Air Coalition works on household energy emissions primarily through support for national planning and development processes, such as NDCs. 
  • 4C - The Clean Cooking and Climate Consortium is a group of partners supporting efforts to achieve climate goals through clean cooking actions. 
  • GIZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit is a federally owned German enterprise which has supported technology and market development for energy saving cooking technologies and customized solutions for basic energy services. 
  • IEA – The International Energy Agency provides information on the current state of clean cooking, the costs of inaction, and the benefits of boosting access through research. IEA has been a strong supporter of country governments addressing clean cooking. 
  • MECS – Modern Energy Cooking Services is a UK Aid funded program that researches the socio-economic realities of a transition from polluting fuels to a range of modern fuels, especially electricity. 
  • SE for All – Sustainable Energy for All is a United Nations initiative focused on filling missing links within the clean cooking sector, including providing data to drive planning and investment in scalable solutions. SE for All helps governments recognize the co-benefits of clean cooking access to increase ambitious actions. 
  • SNV - Stichting Nederlandse Vrijwilligers supports the development of sustainable and inclusive markets for decentralized renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and services such as biodigesters, clean cooking solutions, and solar and other renewable off-grid electricity solutions. 
  • WHO – The World Health Organization supports countries to address household air pollution by providing resources and tools, like the Clean Household Energy Solutions Toolkit (CHEST) and guidance from a health perspective.  
  • World Bank - The World Bank Group commits to mobilizing resources through its Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) for an Efficient Clean Cooking and Heating Partnership with the Clean Cooking Alliance.

Cooperative Agreements

The EPA supports the Clean Cooking Alliance’s “Cleaner Cooking for Household Energy Emission Reductions” project which conducts workshops, technical assistance activities and research to improve stove performance and support technical and programmatic advances. This includes the development of the CLEAR Carbon Methodology and building capacity of Regional Testing and Knowledge Centers to test stoves according to the ISO standards. From 2021-2024, the EPA supported CCA’s “Improving Air Quality through Clean Cooking” project.

From 2021-2024, the EPA supported Colorado State University’s Advancing Sustainable Household Energy Solutions (ASHES) initiative, which provides resources and learning opportunities. Archived webinar recordings are available on the ASHES website. 

EPA Research

EPA's household energy research and test facility in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, is a global leader on stove research and testing. The facility has state-of-the-art measurement capabilities to study emissions of gases and aerosols, including toxic air pollutants, greenhouse gases and black carbon. Research is conducted on multiple stoves and fuels under varying conditions to simulate operating conditions found in the field.

EPA research supports:  

  1. (1) The development and implementation of ISO standards for testing clean cooking solutions.  
  2. (2) Capacity building for international testing and knowledge centers. 
  3. (3) Improved scientific understanding of air pollutant emissions and fuel efficiency.

EPA STAR grant publications  

History

The EPA was a key leader in the early development of the clean cooking sector. In 2002, at the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the EPA Administrator and the agency’s partners launched the international Partnership for Clean Indoor Air (PCIA) which grew to more than 590 partner organizations working in 135 countries to rapidly increase the sustained use of affordable, reliable, clean, efficient, and safe home cooking and heating technology and fuels. 

In 2010, the EPA Administrator and Secretary of State announced the launch of the Clean Cooking Alliance, a public-private partnership led by the United Nations Foundation focused on creating a thriving global market for clean and efficient household energy solutions.  The Alliance exceeded its initial goal of “100 by 20” – 100 million homes with clean and efficient stoves and fuels by 2020.  

Additional Resources

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Last updated on February 4, 2025