Piloting Biomass energy audit for energy and environmental conservation in Homa-bay County, Kenya

Abstract

Biomass energy meets about  70% of Kenyans national energy  requirements and over 90% of rural population are depended on it. However, the traditional ways of producing and utilizing the bioenergy  is inefficient and therefore unsustainable. Bioenergy  consumers expecially households, institutions and local enterprises lack adequate knowledge on their consumption levels,  available energy conservation technologies, alternative fuels like briquettes  and areas of energy wastage. Piloting biomass energy audit was undertaken in Homa-Bay County with objectives of determining the consumption trends of  the  consumers, the types of fuel used, sources of the fuels, utilization technologies  and identify areas of energy wastage. Semi-structured questionnaire and an energy audit tool were used to collect information from the respondents. Results showed that biomass energy is the main energy type for majority of the respondents for cooking and heating. The traditional three stone and  metal cook stoves are the most preferred stoves. At household level, fuelwood  is sourced from own farms and neighbouring  community forests while fuelwood and charcoal for  institutions and domestic use are  obtained  from  markets. On average bioenergy takes 30% of the total domestic and institutional kitchen expenditure and   this has contributed significantly towards higher energy bills in institutions and at household’s levels. The study shows that energy efficiency audit is critical for consumers to track their consumption trends and  identify areas of energy wastage. The study recommends frequent energy audit, use of  energy saving technologies and establishment of woodlots as strategies  for energy conservation.