Globally, clean cookstoves represent the best substitute for open fire biomass stoves in order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fuelwood. Prospects to transfer this technology to Botswana are being explored. Our research objectives were to transfer the clean Institutional Cookstove (IC) technology to Okavango Research Institute (ORI), quantify the amount of mopane (Colophospermum mopane) fuelwood it consumes in comparison to the traditional biomass energy system, and analyze its potential to be used as a substitute for the open fire cooking method. The clean IC technology transfer to ORI was successfully completed before testing its energy efficiency and financial viability. It consumed approximately two-thirds less fuelwood than the traditional three stone stove. This presents an opportunity for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from fuelwood consumption in Botswana. This is a critical consideration in an environment where there is limited readily available fuelwood. The use of clean cookstoves allows enhanced carbon sequestration by live mopane woodland resources. A financial viability analysis of implementing the clean IC in primary schools showed that it has the potential to save money spent on fuelwood. Our case study provides essential pertinent results on the energy efficiency of the developed prototype, which forms a basis for further research on the use of clean cookstoves for mitigating greenhouse gas emissions from fuelwood consumption in Botswana and the entire Cubango-Okavango River Basin. A comprehensive analysis of cultural barriers to adoption of the technology will be carried out through piloting the construction of the clean cookstove.

Tanzania has experienced many natural resource use conflicts in many parts of the country, including the Kilosa and Mvomero districts, ranging from family disputes through to all-out social unrest. Despite some efforts to curb rampant natural resource use conflicts, there is overwhelming evidence of the existence and upsurge of such conflicts, leading to various consequences, including death of people involved, destruction of property and the creation of a sense of insecurity. This study aims to characterize and map the causes, intensity and effects of natural resource use conflicts in the districts of Kilosa and Mvomero, Tanzania. Key Informant Interviews were used to gather valuable evidence to characterize the natural resource use conflicts in Kilosa and Mvomero, which also aided in constructing natural resource-use conflict typology. Quantum GIS software was used for spatial mapping of the conflicts. The study confirmed that land, water, crops, pasture and minerals are the main natural resources behind the conflicts, and therefore these resources have to be treated as crucial dimensions of conflict prevention in Kilosa and Mvomero. Generally, there is complexity in the conflict situations and overlapping of causes and conflict types on the one hand, and overlapping of conflict types and resources which are contested for on the other.

This study focuses on the influence of some of the relevant parameters of biomass pyrolysis on a fuzzified solution of the Distributed Activation Energy Model (DAEM) due to randomness and inaccuracy of data. The study investigates the fuzzified Distributed Activation Energy Model using the fuzzy Weibull distribution. The activation energy, frequency factor, and distribution variables of the 3-parameter Weibull analysis are converted into a non-crisp set. The expression for the fuzzy sets, and their α-cut are discussed with an initial distribution for the activation energies following the Weibull distribution function. The thermo-analytical data for pine needles is used to illustrate the methodology to exhibit the fuzziness of some of the parameters relevant to biomass pyrolysis.

Microorganisms give an early and integrated measure of soil functioning. In particular, soil microbial respiration is recommended for monitoring soil quality. The present study aims to determine the capacity of Albit® (poly-β-hydroxybutyrate, PHB) to reduce the detrimental effects of pesticides on soil microbial respiration. The effects of three conventional pesticides (deltamethrin, dithianon, and difenoconazole) on basal respiration (BR) and substrate-induced respiration (SIR) were assessed in the presence and absence of Albit®. The studied pesticides caused negative impacts on soil functioning, reducing BR and SIR. Applications of Albit® increased BR and SIR, and both BR and SIR were kept similar to the control when pesticides were applied with Albit®. PHB, an active ingredient of Albit®, is known to increase beneficial microflora in the rhizosphere due to its regulatory activity on indigenous microorganisms. Thus, more studies should be carried out under different edaphoclimatic conditions to study the benefits of Albit® applications along with pesticides in order to mitigate their side effects on soil microbial functioning.

Understanding the influence of specific livelihood variables on a household’s well-being provides a crucial basis for effective focus of poverty intervention, and consequently wiser resource allocation. This paper analyses the influence of land access, livelihood strategies (LS) and selected demographic characteristics on household well-being status (HWBS) in Mvomero District, Tanzania. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design whereby quantitative data were collected once from 267 randomly selected households in 8 villages. Data analysis was done using SPSS. Unlike the hypothesis, multinomial logistic regression results demonstrated that per capita land size and location have a positive significant influence (p < 0.05) on HWBS. Likewise, unlike the hypothesis, three more variables including exclusive farming, number of dependents and distance to farms were confirmed to have a negative significant influence (p < 0.05) on well-being. It is concluded that though per capita land size has a positive influence on HWBS, expanding farms through adding plots and distant farming hinders the attainment of well-being. Moreover, households with many dependents and those working in exclusive farming are disadvantaged in the attainment of well-being. There is therefore room to enhance progress in attainment of well-being through reducing the distance to farms and promoting diversification of livelihood strategies. The Tanzania government is advised to support distant farmers with settlements in their destinations. The government and other development agencies are also advised to enhance the capacity of the studied communities and dwellers of other rural land scarce areas in Tanzania for a meaningful diversification of livelihood strategies. This can be through supporting them to gain education and labor skills and also to engage in saving and credits projects. To be inclusive the strategies may pay special attention to households with a large number of dependents.

This article focuses on the influence of relevant parameters of biomass pyrolysis on the numerical solution of the isothermal nth-order distributed activation energy model (DAEM) using the Rayleigh distribution as the initial distribution function F(E) of the activation energies. In this study, the integral upper limit, the frequency factor, the reaction order and the scale parameters are investigated. This paper also derived the asymptotic approximation for the DAEM. The influence of these parameters is used to calculate the kinetic parameters of the isothermal nth-order DAEM with the help of thermo-analytical results of TGA/DTG analysis.

Global warming has caused dramatic changes in regional climate variability, particularly regarding fluctuations in temperature and rainfall. Thus, it is predicted that river flow regimes will be altered accordingly. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of modeling such changes by simulating discharge using the HEC-HMS model. The precipitation was projected using super-high resolution multiple climate models (20 km resolution) with newly updated emission scenarios as the input for the HEC-HMS model for flow analysis at the Red River Basin in the northern area of Vietnam. The findings showed that climate change impact on the river flow regimes tend towards a decrease in the dry season and a longer duration of flood flow. A slight runoff reduction is simulated for November while a considerable runoff increase is modeled for July and August amounting to 30% and 25%, respectively. The discharge scenarios serve as a basis for water managers to develop suitable adaptation methods and responses on the river basin scale.

This paper develops two fisheries models in order to estimate the effect of global warming (GW) on firm value. GW is defined as an increase in the average temperature of the Earth’s surface as a result of CO2 emissions. It is assumed that (i) GW exists, and (ii) higher temperatures negatively affect biomass. The literature on biology and GW supporting these two crucial assumptions is reviewed. The main argument presented is that temperature increase has two effects on biomass, both of which have an impact on firm value. First, higher temperatures cause biomass to oscillate. To measure the effect of biomass oscillation on firm value the model in [1] is modified to include water temperature as a variable. The results indicate that a 1 to 20% variation in biomass causes firm value to fall from 6 to 44%, respectively. Second, higher temperatures reduce biomass, and a modification of the model in [2] reveals that an increase in temperature anomaly between +1 and +8°C causes fishing firm value to decrease by 8 to 10%. JEL Classification: Q21, Q22, Q54, Q56, Q57.

This paper describes a conceptual approach for developing a local water and energy supply system for a resort on a small Caribbean island. The system designed is guided by four main criteria which are sustainability, lowest cost, least possible maintenance and design simplicity. According to this premise the selected concept includes an integrated solution for collecting and handling potable water and the supply of hot water and electricity for domestic use. The proposed techniques are not strictly specific to the island of Mayreau. They can also be adapted to comparable islands and regions.

The dynamics of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology dissemination and utilization has taken center stage in recent years on a global scale, aiming to partly address prevailing rampant energy poverty situations particularly in developing countries. This paper evaluates a flagship electrification project called Ghana Energy Development and Access Project (GEDAP). We purposively sampled 250 solar users in 65 villages across 6 districts in the Upper West region which has the country’s lowest level of electricity access and possibly the highest proportion of abject poverty among its inhabitants compared to the rest of the country. Based on the survey, it can be said that the overall impact assessment of the GEDAP-sponsored off-grid solar PV systems on the quality of life of the local beneficiaries was found to be positively marginal. Among all livelihood assets considered, social capital was markedly enhanced by the provision of modern energy services via isolated solar PV systems. Bottlenecks were identified, including limited system wattage capacity, slight dysfunction of some balance of components, higher interest rates, low technical know-how and inadequate monitoring, all of which are negatively affecting the sustainability of the project. Our findings also indicate that satisfaction derived from solar PV electricity supply among local solar customers differed for varied reasons as follows: moderately satisfied (43%), satisfied (52%), and dissatisfied (5%). For a decisive enhancement of rural livelihoods, we strongly recommend up-scaling system wattage capacity and coverage to build up new or improve upon existing livelihood assets through diversification of the income sources of the local inhabitants.