Use of biomass takes high toll

A major challenge facing developing countries is how to allocate scarce capital, especially public capital, for the provision of basic services. Electrification, as part of an integrated service delivery package, is both a large draw on public funds and also an important catalyst for economic development. One of the major benefits of electrification, but one that is not included in traditional cost-benefit analysis, is the avoided health costs of fuels such as wood, coal and paraffin. March 2005

Despite many studies looking at levels of indoor air pollution, successful initiatives to reduce the burden of ill health are few. One reason may be some commonly held beliefs, especially among those not directly involved in household energy, on some key issues in this field. ITDG has been collaborating on smoke alleviation with the University of Liverpool and other groups internationally for several years. This discussion is based on approaches adopted through two on-going projects funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID) in Kenya, Nepal and Sudan. March 2005

The authors analyzed the dynamics of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from household fuel use in sub-Saharan Africa from 2000 to 2050. The scenarios included a business-as-usual (BAU) scenario, in which fuel consumption and tree-harvesting practices change little except through population growth and urbanization, and large-scale shifts to charcoal- and petroleum-based fossil fuels.

Rural areas of India are characterised by very low per capita energy consumption and in most places commercial energy like electricity is not available. Thus, it is a matter of concern that 60% of rural households still use kerosene for lighting. Besides, 180 million tons of biomass is used in rural areas for cooking through very inefficient and smoky stoves. Cooking and lighting energy constitute 75% of total energy used in rural areas. Jan-Mar 2005

Majority of rural households in India use only kerosene for lighting. Most of the lamps are hurricane-type, which produce very poor light intensity of about 60