Biogas digesters reduce deforestation in villages around Victoria Falls

 When Chumani Sibanda-Ncube was a little girl, she was told it was the woman’s job to cook, clean, collect firewood and lug water back from the borehole — in short, to keep the house running.

In the village of Ntabayengwe, seven kilometres from Victoria Falls, this rigid division of gender roles is slowly changing.

“I’ve never imagined myself cooking,” says Sibanda-Ncube’s husband, Lovemore Ncube, grinning.

In Ntabayengwe, home to just over 1,000 people and where Ncube has lived all his life, men build and maintain the thatched huts in which families live, put up residential boundaries and work as herders.

Residents considered the kitchen — and all the responsibilities that come with it, including collecting firewood — to be the woman’s domain.

But with the installation in 2017 of a biogas digester, which uses cow dung to produce energy, Ncube no longer waits for his wife to return home from work.

He also prepares food for the children in the morning.

“When I get hungry, I can easily cook some food for myself — and sometimes for the family,” he says.

The contraption quietly driving this change — and simultaneously helping reduce deforestation in the area — is a dome-shaped device affixed to the ground just outside the house.

A pipe snakes in through the kitchen window, connecting the device to the family’s two-plate stove.

Biogas — the mixture of gases produced through the breakdown of organic matter such as agricultural and municipal waste — is a renewable energy source.

Over the past decade, a number of initiatives — some led by the government in partnership with international development organizations and others by local nongovernmental organisations such as the Jafuta Foundation — have introduced biogas digesters in rural Zimbabwe.

In the rural parts of Victoria Falls, biogas also is encouraged as a means of reducing deforestation near one of the country’s biggest tourist towns.

The biogas digester costs US$1,000, but Ncube says they didn’t have to pay for it.

The Jafuta Foundation, a local nonprofit that works with rural communities on issues of education and conservation, installed it free of charge.

When revved up the first time, the digester requires 400 kilogrammes of cow dung to begin working.

After that, however, dung from a single cow can keep it running for years.

Ncube says he shovels dung into the digester about once a month.

A family uses four trees’ worth of firewood a month on average, according to the Jafuta Foundation.

Those who use biogas have reported an 85 percent reduction in wood consumption, says Sipho Moyo, a project manager at the organisation.

Biogas has numerous uses.

Johannes Nyamayedenga, a spokesperson for the Rural Electrification Agency, a subsidiary of the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, says the agency has no data on how many rural households are currently electrified, but in 2012 the percentage stood at 13 percent.

“Biogas is one of the ways in which the country can use alternative sources of renewable energy because it uses easily accessible products such as organic matter,” he says.

In 2019, about 65 percent of rural households relied on firewood to run their homes — one reason for the country’s steep deforestation rate of about 262,000 hectares a year, says Violet Makoto, spokesperson for the Forestry Commission.

“The use of biogas, especially in rural areas in the country, has greatly reduced the amount of deforestation,” she says.

Makoto didn’t comment on deforestation rates in specific areas of the country.

Dry dung has long been used as a fuel in other parts of the world.

In Zimbabwe, prior to the introduction of biogas digesters, it was primarily used to layer the floors of huts.

This would keep homes warm in winter and cool in summer.

As of 2017, according to research by the Bindura University of Science Education, 711 digesters were installed across Zimbabwe, with 91 percent of them installed in households, where biogas is primarily used for cooking.

One reason for the slow rollout of the technology, the research notes, is the high cost of installation.

Nyamayedenga, the electrification agency spokesperson, didn’t provide more recent figures or comment on costs because the agency installs digesters only for institutions such as boarding schools and mission hospitals, not for individuals.

The agency has installed digesters at 11 institutions across Zimbabwe.

Households that wish to install digesters have to pay market price, says Nyamayedenga, adding that the government doesn’t regulate private providers.

As a result, most families making use of biogas digesters received them free of cost from nongovernmental organizations such as the Jafuta Foundation.

Of Ntabayengwe’s 132 households, 20 use biogas digesters.

“There was some resistance in the beginning as some villagers did not understand the concept,” Ncube says.

“Some would say they cannot eat food from cow dung. But they have since embraced the concept.”

As the smoke from wood fires has abated, respiratory problems in the village have also decreased, Ncube says

Biogas helps overall health, says Fungai Mvura, district medical officer, even if the decrease in firewood doesn’t have a noticeable impact on the number of respiratory illnesses.

“The biogas concept is good for the health of the community because it is considered clean energy compared to firewood, which produces smoke that is harmful.”

Women’s work, in particular, has become easier.

Sharon Tshabalala, who installed a biogas digester in 2020, says she no longer has to haul home firewood during the rainy season.

“It has become easier to prepare breakfast for the family in the morning, especially for my grandchildren who go to school,” she says.

Dorcas Mabhena, Ntabayengwe’s village head, agrees that the division of labor in some homes has shifted — but only a little.

“Gender roles are almost engraved in one from childhood,” she says. “It could take years for one to shift from that.”

Moyo points to another reason biogas digesters haven’t been fully embraced.

“It is difficult to totally convince the older generation to do away with making a fire in the home due to cultural belief,” he says.

In sub-Saharan African tradition, a hearth represents life.

Along with the kraal, where a family’s cattle are kept, and the silo, where harvested maize is stored, it’s one of the pillars of the homestead, says Ncube.

In addition to the biogas digester powering his kitchen, he has a small fire crackling in his home. – Global Press Journal

Source: Biogas digesters reduce deforestation in villages around Victoria Falls (19/04/22)

Enviro Watch in drive to reduce firewood consumption

Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter

A LOCAL community organisation has launched an environment conservation project where it is distributing less firewood consuming stoves to households.

Vic Falls Enviro Watch’s motive is to reduce cutting down of trees for firewood and use of open fire in the household. It gave 15 rocket stoves to Siyazama Women’s Group in Victoria Falls as a pilot project which will be rolled out to the whole city if successful.

This comes in the wake of a suspension of issuing of permits to sell firewood and the national blitz against illegal firewood and charcoal dealers by the Forestry Commission.

There have been concerns about massive cutting down of trees in and around Victoria Falls by residents for firewood.

A majority of them come from some parts of Mkhosana, Chinotimba, Aerodrome and CBZ stands that have no electricity.

Fifteen women who are members of Siyazama Women’s Group were given rocket stoves on Saturday as a pilot project.

A rocket stove is made of a four-dimensional hollow pipe with three openings, one being an inlet for firewood, the other is a fire outlet on which the plate is mounted, and a breather at the bottom.

The stove uses twigs and chips from wood hence consumes three times less firewood than an open fire.

Vic Falls Enviro Watch made the stoves which are being given free of charge as a pilot project.

The organisation’s chairperson Mr Tony Peel said their motive is to reduce cutting down of trees and use of open fire at home.

“We are concerned about unsustainable developments in Victoria Falls and so we decided to come up with these rocket stoves which are generally three times effective than open fire and use limited energy but with high output.

This is a pilot project which we will be monitoring and once it’s effective we will roll it out to the whole town,” said Mr Peel.

He said the concept will be spread countrywide if it proves to be a success with the aim of reducing deforestation across the country.

Vic Falls Enviro Watch has also erected wildlife related road signs along the Victoria Falls-Kazungula road to prevent accidents caused by wildlife.Victoria Falls ward 11 councillor Edmore Zhou who helped in the formation of Siyazama Women’s Group said members will be assisted in getting firewood from the Forestry Commission.

‘We are negotiating with Forestry Commission so that club members can have access to firewood. The beauty about this stove is that it uses very little firewood meaning you won’t have to endanger your lives going into the wildlife infested bush. The council will soon be raiding firewood dealers and you will be safe,” he said.

Siyazama chairperson Mrs Ketani Phiri said: “Most of us have been arrested and encountered wild animals in the bush. We fetch firewood all year round except for the rainy season when the bush will be thick. So, we sat down and thought of having something sustainable hence we came up with the idea of this club. We want to try this stove and we hope it will work well so we don’t frequent the bush.”

Most houses in Victoria Falls have heaps of firewood which they poach from the surrounding bush. — @ncubeleon

Source: Enviro Watch in drive to reduce firewood consumption (16/08/21)

Victoria Falls residents decimate Chamabondo National Park

SOME suburbs in Victoria Falls have been without electricity for a decade and residents have been cutting down trees for firewood causing massive deforestation in the nearby Chamabondo National Park.

The Victoria Falls City council management has expressed concern over the cutting down of trees which is an environmental hazard.

Hlalani Kuhle, BC846, BC847 which have been in existence for about a decade as well as CBZ stands that were built starting in 2016 have no electricity.

Some electricity poles still lie on the ground where Zesa electricians dumped them a few years ago.

Residents use firewood, charcoal, gas and solar energy. Many poach firewood from the bush where they usually have running battles with anti-poaching teams from the local authority, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority and other private organisations.

A news crew spoke to some of the residents who said they risk their lives from being attacked by wildlife or shot by rangers as they fetch firewood in the bush.

They said life is unbearable and implored authorities to urgently look into the matter and connect electricity to the area.

“We usually monitor the movement of rangers and enter the bush mostly during lunch time or towards the evening when they stop patrolling. We have had several encounters with rangers and anti-poaching units and those who fail to run away get arrested and usually are made to pay spot fines or at the police,” said one of the residents, Ms Sithulisiwe Ncube of CBZ.

Ms Saneliso Dube of BC846 said she has resorted to gas because of the running battles with rangers.

“We still have no electricity here and I now use gas and charcoal for cooking. We wish one day Zesa will connect us because we are tired of buying charcoal,” she said.

Ms Molly Tonono of CBZ stands said they need electricity ironing, cooking and charging electrical gadgets.

Some said they struggle to work from home as they cannot use electrical gadgets such as laptops and phones because of lack of electricity.
A few fortunate ones have installed solar panels for lighting and connecting electrical gadgets.

Victoria Falls City mayor Councillor Somveli Dlamini said the council has engaged Energy and Power Development as well as Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Industry ministries over the issue.

He said residents resort to haphazard cutting of trees because they are desperate.

“Deforestation was necessitated by failure by the power utility to connect the suburbs to the grid. Some of the suburbs were built in 2010 but still have no electricity and residents get into the bush for firewood. We hope Zesa will act faster in erecting the poles they delivered some time ago,” Cllr Dlamini said.

Acting Zesa spokesperson Ms Prisca Utete could not be reached on her mobile phone for comment but a source within the power utility said the company is struggling to get transformers to connect new suburbs.

Environment, Climate, Tourism and Hospitality Minister Nqobizitha Mangaliso Ndlovu who was in Victoria Falls last week, said Government was aware of the issue after being approached by the local authority and is worried about cutting down of trees hence measures would be taken to address the situation.-@NyikaLingani

Source: Victoria Falls residents decimate Chamabondo National Park (31/03/21)

‘Curb Rampant Poaching Of Firewood In Matabeleland North’

 Authorities have been urged to address rampant illegal poaching of firewood which has led to deforestation in Matabeleland North province. There has been a notable increase in unsustainable harvesting of firewood in rural and peri urban areas in the province which has resulted in the mushrooming of illegal firewood traders who have commercialised the commodity.

Power cuts in urban areas have increased demand of firewood as an alternative source of energy with vending stalls now a common site along the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway.

In a speech by the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Matebeleland North, Richard Moyo which was read by the Deputy director in his office, Tapera Mugoriya during the provincial Tree planting day held at Chief Nekatambe’s homestead in Dete on Saturday called on authorities to carry out post harvesting audits to curb rampant firewood poaching.

“Regardless of the importance of indigenous trees to the wellbeing of Zimbabwean communities, the trees suffered heavy destruction in some areas due to a number of factors. While firewood has traditionally been harvested for domestic use, it has increasingly become a commercial commodity in urban areas to complement other forms of energy. This has led to the unsustainable harvesting of trees in rural and peri urban areas and the mushrooming of illegal firewood vending stalls across the country’s towns and cities including along the highways.

“Some of the firewood traders are holders of legitimate licenses/permits issued by the Forestry Commission and Hwange Rural District Council. I want to challenge these two authorities and other environmental agents to conduct post harvesting audits covering the areas where the firewood is coming from before renewing or issuing new licenses/permits,” said Moyo.  He said the country was saddled with a high level of deforestation which stood at 262 000ha annually which was exacerbating climate change. 

“We must ensure that we abide by the country’s environmental legislation and statutes if we are to address the levels of deforestation which nationally currently stands at about 262 000ha per annum. In times such as these when climate change induced challenges are real, it is our duty to as responsible citizens to plant and conserve trees as these form our first line of defense and safety nets against this natural problem. Tree planting is one of many responses to mitigate and adapt to climate change situations.”

Moyo said this year’s commemorations which featured the Baobab tree ran under the theme” Fruit trees for food security and nutrition” was part of efforts by government to promote food security.

Companies in Hwange were also urged to plant trees which play a very important role in regulating the localised microclimate associated with built up areas. Last month a joint operation comprising of security organs, agencies, local authorities and other stakeholders carried out a blitz that was targeting among other things illegal firewood traders especially in Hwange and Lupane districts.

Stakeholders who included Forestry Commission, Painted Dog Conservation, safari operators, District Development Coordinator, Zimparks, traditional leaders, community and traditional leaders took turns to plant Baobab trees in and around chief Nekatambe’ s homestead. The baobab/umkhomo tree which is abundant in Hwange district is used to make fruit pulp, immune boosters, relish, ropes, coffee, bags, paper, oils and amongst other things.

Mishingo Private Business Cooperative, a community-based self-help group has embarked on utilisation of the tree’s products through value addition projects.

Source: ‘Curb Rampant Poaching Of Firewood In Matabeleland North’ (20/12/20)