CONVERTING BUSH ENCROASHMENT PROBLEM INTO CLEAN ENERGY
Kevin James Moore
25 February 2010
Invasive bush species in Namibia makes large areas of land unusable and creates a problem for rural farmers. The bush infestation in Namibia affects 26 million hectares and has lead to a 60 percent decline of commercial livestock over the last 40 years, causing losses to the national economy, according to Combating Bush Encroachment for Namibia's Development (CBEND).
The encroaching bush, called "invader bush," is also contributing to the desertification of Namibia according to Namibia's Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET).
Controlling bush encroachment is expensive and a majority of farmers cannot afford bush clearing. A MET study, Bush Encroachment in Namibia, concluded that bush encroachment is the most devastating factor to sustainable livestock and standards of living in rural areas.
The Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN) and CBEND are providing a solution by converting the invading bush, which is devastating the land, into energy. The CBEND project plans to install wood gasification plants, which will use the invader bush as fuel to produce electricity, in northern Namibia. Electricity produced by the plant will then provide power to the national grid.
The project began in 2007 when the DRFN submitted a proposal to the European Commission Rural Poverty Reduction Programme for funding. The Namibia's National Planning Commission then implemented the project to install a biomass power plant in rural Namibia, energy desk coordinator for the DRFN Robert Schultz told MediaGlobal.
Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies won the bid to produce the wood gasification power plants, of which they have similar units in place around the world. Executive Director Ankur Jain explained to MediaGlobal the effectiveness of the plants to solve Namibia's issues with the invader bush and electricity supply, "It needs wood which is coming from the [encroaching bush] and thus solving two problems." The invader bush provides an indigenous, sustainable, and renewable fuel source.
The gasifier plant system works by converting biomass materials into combustible gas. A single wood gasification plant will be able to generate .25 megawatts (MW) of power. Furthermore, the highly abundant invader bush is a cheap resource for producing energy.
"While a single power plant only produces about 0.25 MW, there is a combined potential of over 200 plants in Namibia, which could produce about 20 percent of Namibia's electricity," said Schultz.
According to Schultz the concept is based on an "energy farmer" model. The gasification plants are simple enough to be operated and maintained by farmers with access to the national electricity grid. "[Farmers] would produce electricity using invasive encroacher bushes and feed electricity into the grid," Schultz said.
Success for CBEND's with the gasification plants will be measured by the reliability of the technology, the feasibility of farmers to operate as independent power producers, and how financially productive the plants will be at creating energy.
The project will direct resources towards improving infrastructure, enhance the livelihoods of rural farmers, and eradicate encroaching bush. Schultz described the benefits to utilizing the bush-to-energy plants, which include the generation of rural income in the agricultural sector through new revenue streams and additional job opportunities, about 20 jobs per power plant. Removal of the encroaching bush will also increase the amount of land creating more space for farmer's livestock.
Addressing the problem of bush encroachment effectively is part of the MET's plan to combat invader bushes and an integral part of Namibia's Second National Development Plan. CBEND's project presents a viable solution to the bush encroachment problem and will set a precedent for Namibia's future. "The project will establish the first independent power producer in Namibia," said Schultz.
25 February 2010
Invasive bush species in Namibia makes large areas of land unusable and creates a problem for rural farmers. The bush infestation in Namibia affects 26 million hectares and has lead to a 60 percent decline of commercial livestock over the last 40 years, causing losses to the national economy, according to Combating Bush Encroachment for Namibia's Development (CBEND).
The encroaching bush, called "invader bush," is also contributing to the desertification of Namibia according to Namibia's Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET).
Controlling bush encroachment is expensive and a majority of farmers cannot afford bush clearing. A MET study, Bush Encroachment in Namibia, concluded that bush encroachment is the most devastating factor to sustainable livestock and standards of living in rural areas.
The Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN) and CBEND are providing a solution by converting the invading bush, which is devastating the land, into energy. The CBEND project plans to install wood gasification plants, which will use the invader bush as fuel to produce electricity, in northern Namibia. Electricity produced by the plant will then provide power to the national grid.
The project began in 2007 when the DRFN submitted a proposal to the European Commission Rural Poverty Reduction Programme for funding. The Namibia's National Planning Commission then implemented the project to install a biomass power plant in rural Namibia, energy desk coordinator for the DRFN Robert Schultz told MediaGlobal.
Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies won the bid to produce the wood gasification power plants, of which they have similar units in place around the world. Executive Director Ankur Jain explained to MediaGlobal the effectiveness of the plants to solve Namibia's issues with the invader bush and electricity supply, "It needs wood which is coming from the [encroaching bush] and thus solving two problems." The invader bush provides an indigenous, sustainable, and renewable fuel source.
The gasifier plant system works by converting biomass materials into combustible gas. A single wood gasification plant will be able to generate .25 megawatts (MW) of power. Furthermore, the highly abundant invader bush is a cheap resource for producing energy.
"While a single power plant only produces about 0.25 MW, there is a combined potential of over 200 plants in Namibia, which could produce about 20 percent of Namibia's electricity," said Schultz.
According to Schultz the concept is based on an "energy farmer" model. The gasification plants are simple enough to be operated and maintained by farmers with access to the national electricity grid. "[Farmers] would produce electricity using invasive encroacher bushes and feed electricity into the grid," Schultz said.
Success for CBEND's with the gasification plants will be measured by the reliability of the technology, the feasibility of farmers to operate as independent power producers, and how financially productive the plants will be at creating energy.
The project will direct resources towards improving infrastructure, enhance the livelihoods of rural farmers, and eradicate encroaching bush. Schultz described the benefits to utilizing the bush-to-energy plants, which include the generation of rural income in the agricultural sector through new revenue streams and additional job opportunities, about 20 jobs per power plant. Removal of the encroaching bush will also increase the amount of land creating more space for farmer's livestock.
Addressing the problem of bush encroachment effectively is part of the MET's plan to combat invader bushes and an integral part of Namibia's Second National Development Plan. CBEND's project presents a viable solution to the bush encroachment problem and will set a precedent for Namibia's future. "The project will establish the first independent power producer in Namibia," said Schultz.
Webmaster: Gilmore Munro. Email Webmaster.
