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When the sultry season of smog, mosquitoes and torn-up pavement hits, many of us take the bulk of our cooking al fresco.

Though the concept of cooking outdoors is as old as dirt, the latest premium barbecues, with their dual-fuel grills and rotisserie add-ons, are not. These new, souped-up models are spectacularly wasteful burners.

Then there are the low-rent hibachis that belch smoke from lump charcoal (made from charred trees) or charcoal briquettes (a restricted product labelled "hazardous" by Health Canada as they may contain coal, starch, sodium nitrate, limestone and borax), along with plug-in units - or the age-old standby, good old-fashioned wood-burning.

There are websites and blogs, let alone small religions, devoted to the question of which barbecue begets the most mouth-watering, flame-licked flavour. But what's best if you want what's best for the environment?

According to Skip Hayden, a research scientist for Natural Resources Canada, there's no clear winner. "From the point of view of all of the standard emissions (and standard pollutants), natural gas and propane barbecues would be cleanest - both charcoal and wood burn dirty," he said.

"From the point of view of greenhouse-gas emissions, if using hardwood [lump] charcoal where the wood came from sustainable harvesting instead of clear-cutting, the amount of carbon released would, in theory, be equal to the amount of carbon absorbed."

Down in Houston, the Texas-sized steaks sizzling on the city's grills have caused what scientists at Rice University have deemed "a somewhat important source" of tiny particles of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the Houston-area atmosphere - particles that researchers believe are contributing to the city's notorious air-pollution problem.

David Ash from Environment Canada acknowledges that "barbecues do emit pollutants that contribute to smog formation. These pollutants come from both the fuel used and the meat itself during cooking. During smog events, it is desirable to reduce or eliminate all activities that contribute to the formation of smog."

But Jack Gibbons, chair of Ontario Clean Air Alliance, is not ready to endorse barbecue bans. "Using your natural gas or propane barbecue will produce much less air pollution than an electric stove that is powered by coal-fired electricity," Mr. Gibbons says. "Also, if your barbecue is outside, it won't make your air-conditioner [also powered by coal-fired electricity] have to work harder to cool your kitchen."

On the taste front, grill guru Ron (Rockin' Ronnie) Shewchuk, Canada's Barbecue Champion and author of Barbecue Secrets and Planking Secrets, says there is "no question that hardwood makes way better flavour than just plain propane."

He concedes that "yes, you're using trees and producing greenhouse gases if you're grilling outdoors," but adds, "we need to have some perspective here."

"Buy a Prius. Take the bus," Mr. Shewchuk advocates. "Do anything you can to help preserve your right to cook outdoors. We were not born with an SUV steering wheel in our hands, but I think that one of the primordial, defining characteristics of mankind is to cook over fire."

Heidi Sopinka, a seasoned world traveller, plans to stay put until the afterlife to neutralize her carbon footprint.

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The meat of the matter

78

Percentage of Canadians who own a barbecue

49

Percentage of time Canadians spent cooking in the backyard during the summer months, compared with time spent in the kitchen during the same period.

39

Percentage of Canadians who say that "barbecue season never ends." Twenty-three per cent say that the outdoor cooking season begins on the Victoria Day long weekend.

Ipsos Reid survey, 2003

hsopinka@globeandmail.com