NAKURU, RIFT VALLEY, KENYA - 2021/10/31: A traditional cooking stove with burning charcoal. Trees capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and convert it into biomass through the process of photosynthesis. Uncontrolled felling of trees to make charcoal is contributing to deforestation and this could impact negatively on the environment. People who cannot afford alternative clean energy opt for charcoal, otherwise known as polluting energy as their main source of cooking fuel. In the ongoing climate change conference in Glasgow, world leaders have pledged to end deforestation by 2030, highlighting the role forests play in decarbonization. (Photo by James Wakibia/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
By Victoria Komuhangi
From our knowledge of chemistry, 1kg of pure carbon, under complete combustion produces 3.6667kgs of carbon dioxide gas.
Charcoal is about 80% carbon; therefore 1kg of charcoal produces 2.9 kgs of carbon dioxide.
Assuming a family in Uganda uses 7kg (very conservative estimate) of charcoal per week this totals to 2.9*7*52weeks = 1, 056kg annually.
Again taking a conservative figure of 1,000 households that use charcoal as their main source of cooking fuel, this amounts to 1,000 tons of carbon emissions per year!!
If more trees were being planted than cut down, there would be a carbon-neutral situation; what is emitted is absorbed by the trees. But the rate of deforestation is much higher than that of afforestation, according to Ministry of Water and Environment. In its Concept Note for the Uganda Water and Environment Week 2020, Ministry of Water and Environment reports that forest cover has declined from from 24% (4.9 million ha) of Uganda’s total land area in 1990 to 9% (1.83 million ha) in 2018, representing a reduction of over 57% in just 28 years! This decline is attributed to biomass (charcoal and firewood) used for cooking. The same report goes on to say that about 90% of Ugandans use firewood and charcoal for cooking.
Government is now clamping down on illegal charcoal dealers, a factor that has led to increased cost of charcoal.
In addition, charcoal causes indoor air pollution that is linked to several health issues like lung cancer and heart diseases. The World Health Organisation, in its 2018 report on ”Household Air Pollution and Health” says that 3.8million people die prematurely from illnesses attributable to household air pollution from charcoal and firewood. 27% of these are due to pneumonia, of which 45% are children under 5 years and 28% adults who are exposed to this pollution.
Also 17% of lung cancer deaths in adults are attributable to exposure to carcinogens from smoke. The risk for women is higher, due to their role in food preparation.
Dependence on charcoal should therefore be discouraged as much as possible, by spreading awareness about cheaper alternatives like energy efficient electrical appliances. They use little energy to cook food due to their high efficiency. Therefore the amount of electricity used to generate heat necessary to cook is also little, hence cheaper. Electricity is truly a clean source of cooking fuel, especially when generated from clean sources like hydro power, as is the case in Uganda. We are blessed indeed!
The writer is an expert in the area of energy efficiency.
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