INDIANS COOK WITH BIOMASS

By Aman Shahi (2016 Batch)

Over the last decades, there has been a great concern about ecological changes in the world, caused by global warming, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and deforestation. There has also been a concern about poverty alleviation and sustainable development in the developing countries where energy use is a crucial issue. In fact, energy is a common factor, both at production and consumption levels, for many of the observed global environmental problems.

 Over two thirds of Indians still burn wood and dung based fuel for cooking, leading to a million deaths a year from indoor pollution. In India 1.3 billion people continue to rely on carbon emitting biomass and dung based fuel for cooking, according to united nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) report titled Sustainable energy for all released this year. As cooking takes place every day, most people using solid fuels are exposed to smoke particles at a level much higher than the accepted annual limits for outdoor air pollution. Epidemiological studies have shown a clear connection between air pollution and heart disease and stroke. The prolific use of this cheap fuel in the absence of clean sources of energy causes staggering damage to human health, especially to the women and children of the house, say medical experts.

The World Health Organisation household Air Pollution and Health report released in March this year states that over 50% of premature deaths among children under five are due to pneumonia caused by particulate matter inhaled from household air pollution. Over 3.8 million premature deaths including stoke, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer are attributed to exposure to household air pollution. India faces a significant challenge in providing access to adequate and affordable energy. Roughly 85% of rural Indian households are dependent on traditional biomass fuels for their cooking energy requirements and about 45% do not have access to electricity according to UNIDO report.

This continued use of carbon emitting biomass across swathes of India is a real cause for concern say environmentalist. When resources are harvested unsustainably and energy conversion technologies are inefficient, there is serious adverse consequence for health, the environment as well as a nation’s economic development.

“Most villagers think that since cow dung is easily available and is for free, why they should spend money on buying LPG (cooking gas) connections or gas stoves, “elaborates one of the villagers. “Moreover, since cooking and orgainsing fuel is a women’s job, the men are far from keen to invest any money in it”. Experts say whittling down dependence on natural resources through the augmented involvement of local government bodies as well as NGOs can go a long way in tackling the menace. More than a third of households are unaware or do not believe that using LPG over a biomass could have health benefits. Such lack of awareness hampers the demand for clean cooking energy in rural India. Where 68% believe that using LPG is better for their health, according to the study .

Experts add that tackling indoor air pollution will help achieve multiple Millennium development Goals (MDGs) set by the United Nations. These goals form a blueprint agreed to by all the worlds’ countries and all the world’s leading development institutions to a better, more prosperous and equitable world.Addressing the menace of indoor pollution will address MDG 4 (reduce child mortality) and MDG 5 (improving maternal health whike also bolstering gender equity (MDG 3).Having sustainable forms of energy for cooking will also free up womens time for income generation that will help eradicate extreme poverty and hunger (MDG 1).Finally,clean household energy can also help ensure environmental

sustainability (MDG7).