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Compounding global environmental problems like climate change, each region experiences its own set of ecological stresses. Take for example the Sahel, a transitory semi-arid region the Sahara desert and the humid savanna further the south. In this band 5000km long by 300km wide, acute population growth has raised energy needs leading to the demand for wood greatly surpassing the environment's capacity regrow. The result : severe deforestation.
The use of firewood is the leading cause of forest destruction in densely populated regions of the Sahel. A shortage of wood has several serious consequences at the economic, social and environmental level, and their combination only augments the considerable number of communities living in poverty.
The removal of vegetation results in erosion of topsoil by wind and rain, leaving nutrient poor land of limited agricultural value. This in turn provokes an intensification of the rural exodus.
Those who are obliged to buy their firewood - city dwellers in particular - end up spending a large part of their family revenue, a further strain on already restricted budgets. In cities, the trend toward charcoal only amplifies the problem. The fabrication of charcoal by current means results in a loss of 50% of the energy originally stored in the wood consumed.
Furthermore, daily burning of wood inevitably leads to breathing in large quantities of smoke and associated health effects. Many waterborne diseases can be avoided by boiling water before drinking it, however the energetic cost in doing so is often prohibitive, especially for those who are most exposed to contaminated water.