From Food Waste to Eco-Friendly Charcoal

Original Story Published by: Byline, Publication, https://www.fairplanet.org
Photo Source: Fair Planet

(Above) Mboza Clinton (right) and Tabe Brandon Njume (left) pose with a trainee.

A group of young Cameroonians have been transforming food waste into smokeless and eco-friendly charcoal briquettes. Some believe the invention could be a game-changer in saving the country's forests and preventing the spread of indoor pollution-related diseases.

Ojong Caroline Ayabi, a farmer from the town of Tiko in Cameroon’s Southwestern region, said her health has greatly improved ever since she stopped using firewood - which for decades had been her primary source of cooking energy. Ayabi had developed sight complications due to the smoke that emanates from fuelwood, especially when not properly dried.

"Smoke from firewood usually affects my eyes, causing tears to come out of them," she told FairPlanet, "and at certain points it itches, too, coupled with a runny nose."

When smokeless charcoal was developed, the 32-year-old mother of two did not hesitate to give it a try. In addition to improving her eyesight, the charcoal has helped Ayabi reduce her work in the kitchen, she claimed, adding that it is more affordable than fuelwood.

Across Cameroon, and particularly in rural areas, over 80 percent of people still rely on fuelwood for energy. As a result, the population is vulnerable to diseases associated with indoor pollution, such as acute infections of the lower respiratory tract, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer,
asthma, cataracts and tuberculosis.

Exposure to particulate matter from all sources of air pollution in the country was estimated to result in approximately 15,000 deaths and some 650,000 disabilities in 2016 alone.

FOREST EXPLOITATION
Forests cover roughly 60 percent (28 million hectares) of Cameroon’s territory, FAO reports, adding that 2 million hectares (42 percent) of them are covered in a tropical rainforest. But the country’s lack of diversified energy sources and an over-reliance on fuelwood and cooking gas has made it difficult for the
government to preserve its forested land.

Between 2001 and 2016, nearly 900,000 hectares of forest were lost to exploitation, despite Cameroon’s commitment to restore 12 million hectares of forest in the species-rich Congo Basin.

This comes as Cameroon’s demand for wood energy amounts to 6,560,000 tons per year, including 356,000 tons of charcoal; combined, firewood and charcoal contribute over FCFA 185 billion (USD 304 million) to Cameroon’s economy - roughly 1.3 percent of its GDP. This demand represents 2.5 million cubic metres and 12,500 hectares of natural forest destroyed each year.