<html><head><style type='text/css'>p { margin: 0; }</style></head><body><div style='font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; color: #000000'>Ken:<br><br> Welcome to the USA!<br><br> This is to pick up on only one paragraph from your yesterday's message (I have snipped the rest below). <br><br>Ron<br><br><hr id="zwchr"><b>From: </b>"Ken Boak" <ken.boak@gmail.com><br><b>To: </b>"Discussion of biomass cooking stoves" <stoves@lists.bioenergylists.org><br><b>Sent: </b>Saturday, June 2, 2012 10:10:14 PM<br><b>Subject: </b>Re: [Stoves] Energy supply and use in a rural West African village<br><br>Mark and Nathan,<br><br>Thank you for a fascinating and important study into the energy usage of a rural Mali village.<br><br> <strong><snip (I have yet to read it, but I heard the presentation at ETHOS. I think maybe more on stoves in the next paper coming.></strong><br style="font-weight: bold;"><br>A conversion from a wood energy economy to a charcoal energy economy, would allow an increase in energy efficiency, provide employment, and produce a sellable product. Whilst charcoal is already being used in the village - it's production is likely to be inefficient, and investment in a larger scale charcoal producing facility/enterprise could lead to a greater efficiency of wood use. Combining charcoal production - and it's waste heat and gas production, with shea oil processing could lead to a possible synergy.<br>
<br> <span style="font-weight: bold;">[RWL: 1. I am a strong proponent of making and using charcoal - but almost never only for its energy value - rather insisting on use of the char for soil improvement and carbon sequestration and the pyrolysis gases for energy. So I am all for using wood for shea oil processing - but with char as a by-product. Here's hoping that in your new position you can bring more attention to the BEK:<br> (http://www.biochar-international.org/AllPowerLabs/BEK)<br><br> 2. I haven't the time to positively determine if char sales are illegal in Mali - but I think so. Regardless, I think the char sales price is likely way under its value. There is a lot of information on how badly charcoal production is hurting all/most of the African (and other) countries. Here is one from about 2008 that makes that point:<br> http://www.inbar.int/publication/TXT/Charcoal%20conference%20proceedings_final_29Decjw.htm</span> <br><br> <span style="font-weight: bold;">3. There are a growing number of ways that wood can be utilized much more sustainably with char as a co-product (see for instance <br> www.coolplanetbiofuels.com<br> </span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Both today's char makers and cooks in
Mali and elsewhere will be happier with a char-making stove economy than
a char-using stove economy. The former can prepare wood for the
char-making stoves - almost certainly by trimming rather than cutting
down trees. The users can make, rather than spend money, as they cook.</span><br>
<span style="font-weight: bold;"> I can't tell from your single paragraph above whether you would agree - but if not, I hope we can discuss this more at the (now) nearby Sonoma Biochar conference at the end of July. Perhaps you can bring along a BEK.</span><br style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ron</span><br><br> <snip><br><br>regards<br><br>Ken Boak<br>
<br>_______________________________________________<br>Stoves mailing list<br><br>to Send a Message to the list, use the email address<br>stoves@lists.bioenergylists.org<br><br>to UNSUBSCRIBE or Change your List Settings use the web page<br>http://lists.bioenergylists.org/mailman/listinfo/stoves_lists.bioenergylists.org<br><br>for more Biomass Cooking Stoves, News and Information see our web site:<br>http://www.bioenergylists.org/<br><br></div></body></html>