The widely-found elephant grass, may replace charcoal as a useful source of energy in Sierra Leone to save the trees and environment.
This was disclosed to Awoko by Dr. Sama Mondeh, Conservation Society boss this weekend.
He said that elephant grass has been identified even by a Bangladesh consultant and now consultation is going on among Non-Governmental Organisations (NGO’s) to reduce pressure on vegetation for charcoal and alternate sources of energy.
He explained that so far, it has been learnt that the Asians have made tremendous strides in energy provision by using non-firewood products.
Dr. Mondeh said that one of such products is elephant grass (straw) and sugarcane, all of which can be compressed into brisquets for energy production.
He explained that Gambia is far ahead of Sierra Leone in providing their people with this alternate by-product, as families can now get cheap stoves or gas by donors.
“Through this process, pressure on charcoal, especially in peri-urban areas can be drastically reduced which contributes to conservation of biodiversity in communities around the country”.
He was speaking while chairing a two-day Environment Protection Agency (EPA) workshop on the REVISION OF THE NBSAP AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE 5TH National Report to the Convention on Biological diversity.
At the British Council Hall on Friday, he explained that the workshop was planned to review the National Biodiversity Action plan developed some ten years ago in 2003.
He explained that the plan was a requirement of the CONFERENCE of PARTIES (COP) to guide the Convention on biodervsity (CBD) which came into being as a result of the Earth Summit in 1992.
Sierra Leone, he said, signed the convention in 1996 which mandates all countries to follow a road map designed by themselves and guided by best practices standards to manage develop and use the country’s natural resources sustainably.
By James Williams
August 27, 2013