Cooking fuels and prevalence of asthma

August 16, 2013 · 0 comments

Cooking fuels and prevalence of asthma: a global analysis of phase three of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC). Lancet, July 2013.

Gary Wong, et al.

Background -Indoor air pollution from a range of household cooking fuels has been implicated in the development and exacerbation of respiratory diseases. In both rich and poor countries, the effects of cooking fuels on asthma and allergies in childhood are unclear. We investigated the association between asthma and the use of a range of cooking fuels around the world.

Methods – For phase three of the International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC), written questionnaires were self-completed at school by secondary school students aged 13—14 years, 244 734 (78%) of whom were then shown a video questionnaire on wheezing symptoms. Parents of children aged 6—7 years completed the written questionnaire at home. We investigated the association between types of cooking fuels and symptoms of asthma using logistic regression. Adjustments were made for sex, region of the world, language, gross national income, maternal education, parental smoking, and six other subject-specific covariates. The ISAAC study is now closed, but researchers can continue to use the instruments for further research.

Findings – Data were collected between 1999 and 2004. 512 707 primary and secondary school children from 108 centres in 47 countries were included in the analysis. The use of an open fire for cooking was associated with an increased risk of symptoms of asthma and reported asthma in both children aged 6—7 years (odds ratio [OR] for wheeze in the past year, 1·78, 95% CI 1·51—2·10) and those aged 13—14 years (OR 1·20, 95% CI 1·06—1·37). In the final multivariate analyses, ORs for wheeze in the past year and the use of solely an open fire for cooking were 2·17 (95% CI 1·64—2·87) for children aged 6—7 years and 1·35 (1·11—1·64) for children aged 13—14 years. Odds ratios for wheeze in the past year and the use of open fire in combination with other fuels for cooking were 1·51 (1·25—1·81 for children aged 6—7 years and 1·35 (1·15—1·58) for those aged 13—14 years. In both age groups, we detected no evidence of an association between the use of gas as a cooking fuel and either asthma symptoms or asthma diagnosis.

Interpretation – The use of open fires for cooking is associated with an increased risk of symptoms of asthma and of asthma diagnosis in children. Because a large percentage of the world population uses open fires for cooking, this method of cooking might be an important modifiable risk factor if the association is proven to be causal.

Funding – BUPA Foundation, the Auckland Medical Research Foundation, the Health Research Council of New Zealand, the Asthma and Respiratory Foundation of New Zealand, the Child Health Research Foundation, the Hawke’s Bay Medical Research Foundation, the Waikato Medical Research Foundation, Glaxo Wellcome New Zealand, the NZ Lottery Board, Astra Zeneca New Zealand, Hong Kong Research Grant Council, Glaxo Wellcome International Medical Affairs.

Improved cook stove adoption and impact assessment: A proposed methodology

August 13, 2013 · 0 comments

Improved cook stove adoption and impact assessment: A proposed methodology. Energy Policy, 7 August 2013.

Karin Troncoso, et al.

Aims – Until now, the success of improved cook stoves (ICS) implementation programs has usually been measured by the number of ICS distributed. Some important research has been conducted to try to determine the effects of the use of an ICS in the user′s health, but these studies are expensive and time consuming. Moreover, no evaluations show the impact of the technology in the user′s lives. This study seeks to contribute to fill this gap.

Scope – By applying cluster analysis techniques to survey data, the most relevant variables that explain adoption and impact were identified. Using these variables, two qualitative indexes are proposed: The adoption index considers the use of the new technology, the level of satisfaction, and the conditions of the stove. The impact index considers the changes in cooking practices and life quality brought about by the ICS. Both indexes are then applied to two implementation programs. The indexes show the differences between the program results and the user′s perceptions of each technology.

Conclusions – The proposed indexes can be used to measure the success of an ICS implementation program in terms of the benefits perceived by the users of these technologies.

Market Analysis for Fuel Efficient Cook Stoves in the Acholi Sub-Region, Uganda

August 13, 2013 · 0 comments

Market Analysis for Fuel Efficient Cook Stoves in the Acholi Sub-Region, Uganda, 2013.

David Nicholson and Kim Beevers. Mercy Corps.

This report details the results of a fuel efficient stove (FES) market assessment carried out across four districts in the Acholi sub-region of northern Uganda throughout April and May 2012. This assessment is part of a broader examination of the energy market within the sub-region carried out by Mercy Corps Uganda to inform its intervention strategy in this sector.

Report findings indicate demand for FES across the Acholi sub-region as well as opportunities for FES actors to meet this demand with products available on the Ugandan market.

Cookstoves Program Aims To Spread Devices Across Africa And Asia

August 7, 2013 · 0 comments

Cookstoves Program Aims To Spread Devices Across Africa And Asia | Source: Ecosystem Marketplace, July 30, 2013|

This year’s State of the Voluntary Carbon Markets 2013 report showed that carbon markets are funneling more and more money into projects that distribute low-carbon cookstoves. Now, a new initiative seeks to propel the adoption of these offset projects even further, with an eye toward contributing to the dissemination of two million improved cookstoves by 2017 in Southeast Asia and West Africa.

The Bonn International Cooking Energy Forum in Germany was the site for the unveiling of StovePlus, a program to provide residents of developing countries in Africa and Asia with alternatives to inefficient cookstoves. GERES, the French non-profit organization behind the new program, aims to distribute 2 million improved cookstoves in these regions by 2017 through StovePlus.

Nearly 3 billion people in the world rely on solid biomass for cooking and heating on a daily basis, but most of them use inefficient devices and open fires, leading to 4 million premature deaths every year, according to the Global Burden of Disease Study commissioned by the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation. Reliance on biomass also puts great pressure on natural resources, putting the world’s forests at risk, GERES notes.

The StovePlus program aims to strengthen the clean cooking sector and provide technical support to project developers in South-East Asia and West Africa, with the support of the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves (the Alliance). The Alliance provides funding to the GERES Biomass Energy Lab in Cambodia, one of the services offered in StovePlus. In 2012, the Alliance released a request for proposals (RFP) to enhance capacity for a global network of centers to provide testing, cookstove development, and capacity building services. Thirteen centers were selected for awards in Bolivia, Cambodia, China, Ghana, Honduras, India, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Peru, Senegal, South Africa, and Uganda (lab and field). Under the RFP, $1.6 million was made available to support these centers.

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Bonn International Cooking Energy Forum 2013, June 26-28, 2013

August 7, 2013 · 0 comments

Bonn International Cooking Energy Forum 2013

The Bonn International Cooking Energy Forum aims to develop recommendations to strengthen the commitment of European partners and build new partnerships with and within the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves.

Representatives from relevant ministries, the private sector and non-governmental organizations in European and developing countries were invites along with implementing agencies to discuss how best to advance and harmonize their contributions towards reaching the ‘100 million by 2020’ goal by boosting sustainable markets for modern cooking energy along the entire value chain from fuel production to energy use.

Important topics discussed at the Forum were how to contribute to the ‘100 million by 2020’ goal, how the private and public sector can join forces to create vibrant markets for cookstoves, and what opportunities are emerging in cooking fuels and usage.

Transforming Household Energy Practices among Charcoal Users

August 7, 2013 · 0 comments

Transforming Household Energy Practices among Charcoal Users in Lusaka, Zambia: A User-Centred Approach, 2013.

Atteridge, A., M. Heneen and J. Senyagwa. Stockholm Environment Institute.

This study takes a user-centred approach to study household energy practices, with the goal of identifying policy and technical solutions that could induce large-scale change.

The practice of burning charcoal to service household cooking and heating needs, common in urban and peri-urban Lusaka as in other parts of sub-Saharan Africa, creates an array of health, livelihood and environmental problems. In this paper, we examine the drivers of current energy use practices, the capacity of households to change current practices, and the needs and wants of users that might motivate or hinder such a change.

Fifteen low- and middle-income households in Lusaka were interviewed and observed. Virtually all showed some attachment to the traditional mbaula stove, which uses charcoal as fuel, but when asked about observed shortcomings, they recognized these – especially in terms of cost and health. They also expressed a willingness to explore alternatives, but cannot afford one appealing option, cooking with electricity, because it is deemed too expensive for many low- and middle-income households. The livelihood constraints of local tinsmiths who produce mbaulas, meanwhile, prevents them from investing time in exploring improvements to their stoves.

The study suggests three actions might help to significantly reduce charcoal use in Lusaka: introducing more efficient cookstoves which closely resemble the mbaula and are locally made; promoting simple and inexpensive solar water heating devices to reduce charcoal demand for water heating; and electricity price restructuring to lower tariffs for the poor. Specific design elements for an improved charcoal stove are also suggested.

Tackling the health burden from household air pollution (HAP) : development and implementation of new WHO Guidelines

July 29, 2013 · 0 comments

Tackling the health burden from household air pollution (HAP) : development and implementation of new WHO Guidelines. Air Quality and Climate Change, 47(1), 2013 pp. 32-38

Bruce, Nigel, et al

Household air pollution (HAP), arising mainly from the combustion of solid and other polluting fuels, is responsible for a very substantial public health burden, most recently estimated as causing 3.5 million premature deaths in 2010. These patterns of household fuel use have also important negative impacts on safety, prospects for poverty reduction and the environment, including climate change. Building on previous air quality guidelines, the WHO is developing new guidelines focused on household fuel combustion, covering cooking, heating and lighting, and although global, the key focus is low and middle income countries reflecting the distribution of disease burden.

As discussed in this paper, currently in development, the guidelines will include reviews of a wide range of evidence including fuel use in homes, emissions from stoves and lighting, household air pollution and exposure levels experienced by populations, health risks, impacts of interventions on HAP and exposure, and also key factors influencing sustainable and equitable adoption of improved stoves and cleaner fuels. GRADE, the standard method used for guidelines evidence review may not be well suited to the variety and nature of evidence required for this project, and a modified approach is being developed and tested.

Work on the guidelines is being carried out in close collaboration with the UN Foundation Global Alliance on Clean cookstoves, allowing alignment with specific tools including recently developed international voluntary standards for stoves, and the development of country action plans. Following publication, WHO plans to work closely with a number of countries to learn from implementation efforts, in order to further strengthen support and guidance. A case study on the situation and policy actions to date in Bhutan provide an illustration of the challenges and opportunities involved, and the timely importance of the new guidelines and associated research, evaluation and policy development agendas.

Upgrading to cleaner household stoves and reducing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

July 26, 2013 · 1 comment

Upgrading to cleaner household stoves and reducing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among women in rural China — A cost-benefit analysis. Energy for Sustainable Development, 10 July 2013

Kristin Aunana, et al.

Highlights
• We measured current COPD prevalence and PM2.5 concentrations in rural Guizhou, China.
• Costs and health benefits of possible household stove interventions were estimated.
• Annual average PM2.5 exposure is reduced from 300–400 μg/m3 to 90–180 μg/m3.
• Annually 0.6–3.2 new cases of COPD among women are avoided per 1000 households.
• A probabilistic cost-benefit analysis shows large net benefits of interventions.

Reducing Urban Poverty through Fuel Wood Business

July 26, 2013 · 1 comment

Reducing Urban Poverty through Fuel Wood Business in Masvingo City, Zimbabwe: A Myth or Reality, 2013.

Bernard Chazovachii, et al.

This paper argues a case for reducing urban poverty through fuel wood business in view of the plight of load shading in Zimbabwe. Although the use of firewood is not a welcomed source of power in urban areas, it emerged to be wide spreading fuel for domestic use. Electricity shortages have made Zimbabweans opting for firewood for heating, cooking and other domestic chores to cushion the times when electricity is off. Since the start of this sell of firewood, the viability of the enterprise in poverty reduction has not been tested.

Firewood harvesting has caused untold environmental degradation in Masvingo urban and the surroundings. Although this affected the ecology, it has created sound opportunities for urban poor who are in transport business, hired to fetch firewood from the bush. The undeveloped commercial stands are being turned into firewood wholesales. This has created entrepreneurial activities for urbanites that had nothing to do.

However, fuel wood trading would sustain urban livelihoods if it meets the strong sustainability criteria of enhancing all the five capitals. Livelihood sustenance is linked to the resilience or sensitivity of livelihood assets to change in socio-economic and political conditions rather than asset per se. For, some assets are more resilient or less sensitive than others. Therefore enhanced livelihood security should be assessed on the basis of the resilience of various livelihood assets and improvements therein.
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Bangladesh – Knowledge of Health Hazards and Perception of Prevention Amongst Females Exposed to Biomass Fuel

July 23, 2013 · 0 comments

Knowledge of Health Hazards and Perception of Prevention Amongst Females Exposed to Biomass Fuel and Gas/Electricity Fuel in A District of Bangladesh. Anwer Khan Modern Medical College Journal, Vol 4, No 1 (2013)

Md Abdul Alim, Abu Sadat Mohammad Nurunnabi, Salahuddin Ahmad, Mohammad Adnan Khan, Sk Akhter Ahmad
Abstract

A crosssectional study was designed and conducted from March to June 2007, in Madla, a rural area, and in Thanthania, an urban area, under Bogra District of Bangladesh, to see and compare the prevalence of respiratory disease among female biomass fuel users and gas/electricity fuel users. A total of 103 females from the rural households meeting the defined enrollment criteria for biomass fuel group were selected purposively as cases, while 101 females from the urban households meeting the defined eligibility criteria for controls were included in gas/electricity fuel group.

The participants were interviewed on a semi-structured questionnaire. Nearly 70% of the biomass fuel users used wood for the daily cooking and heating purposes, 64% leaves, 31.1% cow dung, crop residue 30.1% and 7.8% saw-dust. The biomass group exhibited a significantly higher frequency of respiratory problem (16.5%) compared to their gas/electricity counterpart (5%). The findings revealed that, 67.5% of the biomass group complained of eye problem followed by cold 36.1%, headache 33.8%, cough 13.9% and difficulty in breathing 11.1%.

The respondents of gas/electricity group also complained about same health hazards but they were less aware of the problems. Both the group had fairly comparable level of perception of prevention of hazards of biomass fuel (p>0.05), except that a significantly higher proportion of biomass group (12.2%) told that the problem could be avoided by using kerosene stove compared to the gas/electricity group (1.2%).

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