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edit this page Theme editorial: Household energy, smoke and health
Energie domestique, émissions de fumée et impact sur la santé
L'auteur montre que les émissions de fumée sont liées aux formes d'énergie utilisées telles qu'illustrées par l'échelle énergétique. Les populations rurales défavorisées ont tendance à se situer au bas de l'échelle où les émissions de fumée résultant des bio-combustibles sont particulièrement élevées. En outre l'auteur souligne que l'impact sur la santé humaine doit être analysé à travers tout le cycle du combustible, de la collecte jusqu'à l'utilisation finale. |
Heat energy is the fundamental requirement for cooking and space heating. Heat energy in rural homes is obtained by combustion of fuel in an appropriate device; in addition to heat energy, the combustion process produces smoke and gases which are major sources of heath problems. Fuels range from the very basic animal waste, crop residues and wood, which are available at zero or minimal financial cost, through to liquid and gaseous fuels which can be expensive, and additionally have transport costs.
The emission of hazardous combustion products is closely related to the grade of fuel used. A notional fuel ladder is illustrated in Table 1, and improvement in household health is linked to ability to move up the ladder.
For most people in rural locations, the available fuels are towards the bottom of the ladder with very little opportunity to move up. Indeed, when wood fuel resources become scarce, people typically move down the ladder to use crop residues and dung as a fuel for cooking. Health hazards are associated with the range of activities, from collection of the fuel, processing to make it suitable for burning, through to the combustion process itself, as shown in Table 2.
Biomass fuels will continue to be the only source of heat energy for 75% of people in developing countries: the adverse health effects of the products of combustion, and particularly smoke, are evident. The level of awareness must be raised, and technical, educational and policy-level interventions taken to improve the household environment. Table 1: Fuel preference ladder
Rungs on the ladder |
Preferred direction of progress up ladder |
Difficulties to achieving progress |
Liquid petroleum |
↑ |
Low family incomes and cost of higher grade fuels |
gas LPG |
↑ |
Transportation costs and poor distribution systems |
Kerosene |
↑ |
Preference for traditional cooking practices |
Charcoal |
↑ |
Lowly status of kitchen in household |
Wood
Crop residues
Dung |
↑ |
Readily available biomass fuels, often without charge |
Table 2: Health hazards associated with biomass fuels | Stage in fuel cycle | Activity | Possible health effects | | Collection | Gathering fuel | Trauma; reduced infant/child care; bites from venomous snakes, spiders, insects; allergic reaction; fungus infections; severe fatigue; landmine injury or death | | Processing | Preparing dung cakes | Faecal/oral/enteric infections | | | Charcoal production | Carbon monoxide/smoke poisoning; burns/trauma; cataracts | | Combustion | Smoke emission | Conjunctivitis; acute respiratory infection (ARI) including pneumonia; cor pulmonale; adverse reproductive outcomes; lung cancer; increased infant morbidity/mortality; depressed immune response; chronic obstructive lung diseases (COLD) - chronic bronchitis, emphysema, asthma | | | Toxic gases (carbon monoxide) | Acute poisoning; low birth weight; increased stillbirths | | | Heat emission | Burns and scalds; cataracts | | | Cooking posture | Arthritis and related bone disease; back pain |
[top] [end]Contents: Boiling Point 40: Household energy and health  . |
Household energy, smoke and health - Smoke from biomass and its effects on infants - Health risk caused by domestic smoke - Emissions from high altitude stoves - a case study in Nepal - Biomass smoke and ill-health in India - preliminary results from a national survey - Global network for the health effects of environmental air pollution - Fuels, stoves and indoor air pollution in Jaracuaro, Mexico - Redesign of liquified petroleum gas stove for the blind - How many of these improvements are in your stoves programme - Participatory Technology Development in stove manufacture - a case study - Renewable energy sources in Nigeria- Efficient household energy use in Uttara Kannada District, Karnataka - Research into cooking and heating applications of down-draught stoves - Comparing forestry wood species for the charcoal supply of Antananarivo city, Madagascar
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