December 2011

Bamboo charcoal is a viable, clean and sustainable alternative to fuelwood and may be the key to combating soil degradation and massive deforestation in Africa while still meeting domestic energy needs, say experts.

A surging population in Africa seeking to provide energy for cooking needs has led to massive environmental damage, including soil degradation.
 
Worldwide deforestation accounts for 25-30 percent of annual CO2 global emissions, the result of the burning of brushland for subsistence agriculture and wood fires used for cooking.
 

Climate change poses a long-term threat to the world, because an unchecked acceleration of current warming trends could have catastrophic consequences for billions of people.

As defined in Article 4 of the European Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) each European Member State has provided a National Renewable Energy Action Plan (NREAP) to the European Commission, detailing projections for renewable energy development up to the year 2020. By that year, the cumulative consumption of renewable energy in all European Member States should result in an overall share of renewable energy of 20% across the European Union (EU).