The Charcoal Project

Wood Energy in Africa: the next gold rush?

Recent news out of Uganda about the displacement of tens of thousands of people from their land to make way for a large-scale biofuel plantations raises question about governmental oversight and corporate social responsibility on the part of of foreign investors.

It is all the more urgent that African nations, with the help of appropriate international agencies, begin putting place the regulatory framework that will lead to the responsible and sustainable exploitation of wood energy resources in the context of low-carbon economic growth and high-value export generation.

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Study: Charcoal and patterns of forest degradation in Tanzania

A study presented at the June symposium on charcoal organized in Arusha, Tanzania, finds that,

1. At current rates, no high value timber will be left in Tanzania’s coastal forest in 37 years.

2. The Tanzanian government lost $53 million USD in 2005. This is due to the fact that 96% of the timber harvest was undeclared.

3. China imports 10 times more timber from Tanzania that total declared imports.

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VIDEO: The charcoal problem in Tanzania compellingly explained

Dar es Salaam consumes the equivalent of 16 olympic pools in charcoal every day. This figure is increasing daily as rural populations migrate to urban centers. At $350 million per year, charcoal is big business, too.

This great video produced by the World Bank last year (2010) lays out the issue in a way that is well-documented and visually compelling.

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VIDEO: How the woodfuel shortage is affecting East African schools & community

This short YouTube video is based on an interview I did in June with Henry Twinemasiko, the director of the REF schools in Rubaare, Uganda, (visit our project page) who appealed to us six months ago for help in bringing energy efficiency and renewable fuels to his school district. Henry is a tremendously inspiring and committed man and together we have a plan to cut the schools woodfuel consumption (and the associated costs), and generate revenue for the schools by converting the region’s agricultural waste into fuel briquettes for the school and the community. We have also began with our Continue reading