Potential of Biomass Conservation Through Dissemination of Efficient Cook Stoves in Pakistan

Majority of the rural population of Pakistan meet their domestic cooking and heating energy needs by burning biomass in inefficient traditional cook stoves (TCS) resulting in deforestation and indoor air pollution (IAP). High exposures to indoor air pollutants have resulted in serious health problems. In the last few decades, scientific methods have been applied for improving the performance of cook stoves and various types of improved cook stoves (ICS) have been introduced and disseminated in rural areas of the developing countries. This paper presents an assessment of the potential of ICS for biomass conservation in Pakistan. The total potential of biomass saving through replacement of all TCS with ICS has been estimated as 14.5 million tonnes. The paper concludes that more than half of the total biomass consumption for cooking and heating purposes could be saved through substitution of TCS with ICS. The dissemination of ICS would also result in the conservation of forests, reduction in the indoor air pollution level and associated health hazards etc.