Reviewed by
Robert Wazeka
The techniques of forestry are mainly for purposes such as timber, pulp, watersheds, and not for fuel production. This has traditionally been considered the lowest use for wood. In fact, there is little modern experience with growing for firewood.
Firewood crops: shrub and tree species for energy production. Report of an ad hoc panel of the advisory committee on technology innovation, Board on Science and Technology for International Development, Commission on International Relations. Washington, D.C. National Academy of Sciences, 1980, 237 p. No price quoted, but free to appropriate institutions. (Commissioned by the US Agency for International Development.)
In July, 1977, an international panel on firewood crops met in Airlie, Virginia, in the United States, to consider the results of a worldwide inquiry into fuelwood tree species. At the panel's request, 1200 different tree species that could become important sources of firewood in the developing world were identified. The panel, created under the auspices of the United States National Academy of Sciences, narrowed the list down to 700, which constitutes one of the book's appendixes.
From these 700 trees, the panel made further selections, arriving at what it considered to be the 60 potentially most productive species. It looked for multi-purpose trees, trees that adapted well to different sites, that established themselves easily, that were not eaten by wildlife, and that required minimal care and could survive in difficult environments. It sought out trees that could coppice, fix nitrogen, grow rapidly, and produce wood of high calorific value with an absence of sparks or toxic smoke.
Those 60 trees are the principal subjects of this important book. Each is given a two-page spread containing concise information with salient details and at least one good-sized, black-and-white photograph. The photographs come from all over the world, and do more than merely illustrate the trees. Taken together, they demonstrate vividly the importance of trees for fuelwood in the developing world and show how trees form an integral part of the people's lives. Of the 60 species presented, 16 are suitable for humid tropics, nine for tropical highlands and 35 for arid and semi-arid regions.
There is an introduction written by Erik Eckholm of the Worldwatch Institute and an introductory chapter on wood as fuel. There are 10 appendixes, including the master list of 700 tree species. They include case studies from Ethiopia and the Republic of Korea, a section on using fuelwood efficiently (with examples of different kinds of stoves), selected readings, research contacts, an explanation of terms, biographical sketches of the panel, a list of contributors and an index of plants.
In a foreword, Edward S. Ayensu, Director of the Smithsonian Institution's Office of Biological Conservation and the panel's chairman, points to the compelling need to do something now to alleviate the world's fuelwood crisis. "More than one third of the world's population depends on wood for cooking and heating," be writes. "Eighty-six percent of all the wood consumed annually in the developing countries is used for fuel, and of this total at least half is used for cooking. The situation is growing so desperate that wood is poached from forest reserves; hedges planted around homes are stolen at night; and even scaffolding is stolen from building sites to meet shortages in firewood supplies.
"In the face of global concern over the dwindling supply of fuelwood, the rate of forest decimation to provide basic human necessities in developing countries is alarming. We must look upon woody plants as renewable resources that, if effectively managed, could alleviate the problem not only for the present, but for posterity."
His appeal is reiterated in Erik Eckholm's introduction: "Firewood scarcity is probably most acute today in the countries of the Indian subcontinent and in the semi-arid stretches of Africa below the Sahara, although it affects many other areas as well. In Latin America the scarcity of wood and charcoal is a problem throughout most of the Andean region, Central America and the Caribbean. One of the obvious results of this scarcity is that as firewood prices rise, so does the economic burden on the poor. In some cities the price of firewood has risen by more than 300 percent in two years. Government agencies have collected few statistics on this trend, but firewood prices seem to be rising beyond the reach of many city dwellers."
While it is universally recognized that massive reforestation efforts are needed, both to meet the requirements of the people and to rejuvenate damaged ecosystems, getting such efforts started is much more difficult than it might seem. Writes Eckholm, "Even if the political will is there and the funds are allocated, reforestation campaigns are unexpectedly difficult and complex. Planting millions of trees and successfully nurturing them to maturity is quite different from such well-bounded technical tasks as building factories, and the projects frequently fail. For example, most of the regions with too few trees also have too many cattle, sheep, and goats, and where rangelands are badly overgrazed, livestock may eat the leaves off saplings. To be successful, reforestation efforts require a formidable administrative effort to protect the young trees for years until they are grown - and once they are grown there is the problem of monitoring timber harvests and of systematic replanting as the trees reach maturity."
The need is pressing. Calculations made by John Spears of the World Bank indicate that even with the optimistic assumption that wood-conserving stoves, biogas reactors and solar cookers will be used if and when available, an additional 20-25 million ha of trees must be planted in the next 20 years. At the present rate of reforestation, only slightly more than 2 million ha will be reforested in that period. Some regional shortfalls may be much more serious. In Africa's Sahel zone, for example, the Club du Sahel estimates that tree planting must increase by a factor of 50 to meet the needs of people there over the next 20 years.
This, then, is why the selection of trees solely for the production of fuelwood becomes even more important.
Sixty aggressive and quick growing fuelwood tree species
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For the humid tropics Acacia auriculiformis For the tropical highlands Acacia mearnsil For the arid and semi-arid regions Acacia brachystacya |
Though the panel recognizes that many hurdles must be overcome to implement such a policy, it sees some cause for optimism: "In theory, probably all countries have the physical resources to meet their most urgent rural firewood needs. It has been estimated that at least 75 percent of tropical land is inherently unsuited to sustained conventional agriculture, but 35 percent of the population of the tropics lives on this land. About half of it will not support vegetation of any kind. The best use of the remainder is tree cultivation or the simultaneous or sequential cultivation of trees with annual crops or with the pasturing of animals. Virtually everywhere, villages have unused or misused areas on which woodlots can be planted.
"But there is little modern experience with growing trees explicitly for firewood, even by most foresters. Fuel production has long been considered the lowest use of wood, and foresters have traditionally cultivated trees primarily for other purposes, such as for timber and pulpwood. For these products, the species they choose to grow are not those that would be grown purely for fuel. Moreover, the yield measurements reported, the management techniques devised, and the varieties (provenances) selected almost never reflect potentials for firewood production.
"Firewood plantings can use species with short boles, crooked trunks, or wood that warps or splits as it dries. These features are not as detrimental to fuelwood use as to timber production. Nor is stem size. In simple cook-stoves, for example, branches as small as one or two centimeters in diameter may be ideal. Thus a shrub may prove satisfactory for village fuelwood silviculture if it grows fast and produces a dense wood that burns with intense heat. In practice, fuelwood may come both as a primary crop from fuelwood forests and as a secondary crop from timber forests."
Those wishing to receive free copies of the book should write on their institutional letterheads to: Commission on International Relations (JH 215), National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council, 2102 Constitution Avenue, Washington, D.C. 20418, USA.
New solid fuel magazine
A new American professional solid fuel magazine began publication in December 1980. Based in Concord, New Hampshire, and thus in the centre of a region which has seen rapid growth in wood heating for homes and industry, the new magazine is called Wood'n Energy.
In the premier issue, publisher Susan Salls states, "It is our hope that Wood'n Energy becomes a focal point for the industry, an indispensable tool for all those involved in solid fuels." With this in mind, the magazine created an editorial advisory board composed of some of the leading names in the solid fuels industry.
The magazine will emphasize technical, economic and political developments relating to wood and coal heating in the United States, but it will also contain a regular "International Reports" section. The first issue contained a feature article on coal burning in the United Kingdom and the second an article on the use of wood and coal for heating in China.
Other regular departments, or sections, include new reports on US legislation affecting the industry, on activities of private and governmental bodies across the country, and on the doings of the newly formed Wood Heating Alliance.
Indonesia publishes proceedings of the 8th World Forestry Congress
The proceedings of the Eighth World Forestry Congress held in October 1978, in Djakarta, are scheduled for publication late in 1981. The seven-volume, 13 000-page compendium will include all discussions, reports, speeches and position papers presented at the Congress. All of these will be printed in English, French and Spanish, but most special and voluntary additional papers will be printed in the original language with summaries in the other two.
The seven volumes are: (1) General sessions and other generalities, 700 p.; (2) Forestry for rural communities, c. 1 500 p.; (3) Forestry for food, c. 1900 p.; (4) Forestry for employment promotion, c. 1700 p.; (5) Forestry for industrial development - the forest resource base, c. 1900 p.; (6) Forestry for industrial development - the forest industries, c. 2 500 p.; and (7) Forestry for quality of life, c. 2 600 p.
The set weighs about 30 kilograms. Although printing and binding costs are approximately US$400 per set, the sale price is only US$250, including surface mail. Individual volumes cost US$50 each, including mailing.
Orders should be made to: Eighth World Forestry Congress (Proceedings), c/o Direktorat Jenderal Kehutanan, PO Box 3668, Djakarta, Indonesia.
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Warning: a potentially dangerous book The preface of Firewood crops contains the following warning: "If misunderstood, this book is potentially dangerous. Because of the severity of the firewood crisis, the panel has selected trees and shrubs that are aggressive and quick-growing. These seem appropriate for cultivation in areas of extreme fuel shortage, particularly where climates and soil conditions are harsh. But in more equable environments and where no fuelwood shortages exist, such potentially invasive plants should be introduced only with great care. The threat of their weediness is too great. In any trials of fuelwood plantations local species should always be given first priority". |
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