Assessing the role of biomass dependence on climate change. A case study of fuel wood production in Nabisweera Sub-county

Abstract

Over dependence on wood fuel (charcoal and firewood) biomass is thought to be one of the causes of climate change in Uganda. This study revealed outcomes relating to the role of biomass dependence on climate change in Nabisweera sub-County. The data sets used were tree biomass loss, tree land loss in hectares and carbon dioxide emissions data obtained from the Global Forest Watch (GFW) website. Rainfall and temperature data for the previous ten years from 2010 to 2019 was also obtain from NASA/POWER SRB/FLASHFlux/MERRA2/GEOS 5.12.4 (FP-IT) 0.5 x 0.5 Degree. This data was analyzed using graphs generated with the help of Microsoft excel. Results from the sociodemographic characteristics were obtained from structured questionnaires as well as results on the level of biomass dependence in Nabisweera sub-county. These results were analyzed using the IBM software package known as SPSS, this was used to tabulate questionnaire data and also generate related graphs. The study collected field data (sample size: 58) which was subjected to descriptive analysis. The findings showed that over 96%of the households in Nabisweera sub county use charcoal and firewood for cooking purposes. This fuel use generates environmental hazards such carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere derived from charcoal burning and deforestation. This further indicates high level of wood fuel consumption in Nabisweera sub-county with environmental impacts. Temperature and rainfall trends in Nabisweera sub-county from 2010 to 2019 indicated a rising trend and slightly reducing trend respectively. The rainfall in Nabisweera sub-county from 2010 to 2019 was found to be more variable as compared to temperature with coefficients in variation 14.38% and 0.892% respectively. The study recommended the use of alternative energy sources apart from wood fuel such as solar, biogas, natural gas and hydroelectric power in order to reduce on the consumption of wood fuel. Furthermore, the study recommended the use of improved eco-stoves to replace the inefficient three stone stoves, reduce wood consumption and also reduce the greenhouse gas emissions. Tree planting practices were also recommended such as afforestation re-afforestation, agroforestry since these can greatly help improve the climate of Uganda.