Evaluation of Indonesian transition pathways in biogas utilisation
According to Statistics Indonesia, it is recorded that between 2005 and 2010 about 40% of total Indonesian households used traditional biomass (firewood) as their primary cooking fuel, with a peak of around 49% in 2007. Firewood users were mainly located in rural areas of Indonesia. Although the Indonesian Government has established a fuel substitution programme to incentivise the use of LPG, rural areas were still untouched. The main reason is that firewood is easy to be collected from the local environment, or purchased at low cost. This condition leads to a high number of premature deaths annually as women spend hours per day in the unhealthy cooking environment. The utilisation of fuel wood in terms of tree branches will remain because of its abundant availability, and less need for maintenance as compared to biogas production.
The implementation of biogas technology at the household scale is foreseen to spread among as many as possible households in Indonesia, especially for people living in rural areas. Using biogas for cooking will positively impact health, especially for women and children, and mitigate climate change through among others CH4 and CO2 emissions reduction. Also, biogas utilisation will enhance the water quality of the rivers, since there will be no animal dung discharged to rivers. In addition, using biogas provides economic opportunities for households, as biogas production pre-empts the household from purchasing fuel as well as fertiliser.
Read more in published version by JIQ Magazine > http://www.jin.ngo/11-publications/168-jiq-special-transrisk-biogas