From 1743ef3f3aa0186616817cd73f43aba9061d0c6d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Hermine Osburn Date: Sun, 12 Jan 2025 01:25:40 +0800 Subject: [PATCH] Add Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers to Combat Drought In Kenya --- ...wers-Farmers-to-Combat-Drought-In-Kenya.md | 40 +++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 40 insertions(+) create mode 100644 Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Combat-Drought-In-Kenya.md diff --git a/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Combat-Drought-In-Kenya.md b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Combat-Drought-In-Kenya.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9c638ed --- /dev/null +++ b/Cotton-Waste-Biofuel-Powers-Farmers-to-Combat-Drought-In-Kenya.md @@ -0,0 +1,40 @@ +
By Nita Bhalla
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KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it should be a joke when he was informed he could water his drought-hit crops more cheaply, cleanly and effectively using a pump sustained by cotton waste.
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"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" chuckled Mathoka, bending down to check the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.
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"But it works," he said, [strolling](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) over to a neighboring tree and plucking a large green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get higher yields, specifically throughout drought durations."
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Mathoka said his profits had doubled in the two years he has actually been pumping water utilizing [biodiesel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048), which is both more efficient and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre more affordable than routine diesel.
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The [biodiesel](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) he is using is not simply good news for him - it is also great news for the planet.
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Unlike many biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making process.
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That means that as well as being cleaner and more affordable than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no extra land is needed to produce it.
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From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) crops has driven forest communities off their land and pushed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more profitable crops-for-fuel - intensifying food shortages.
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"Our [biodiesel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) comes from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the procedure of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/).
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"We began producing and using it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now utilize it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for watering."
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More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have so far purchased biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, said Zavery.
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DRY RIVER BEDS
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Climate change is taking a toll across east Africa and significantly [erratic](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) weather is ending up being commonplace in [nations](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rainfall.
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The recurring dry spells are [ruining](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing millions of [individuals](https://www.investing.com/equities/mission-newenergy-ltd-company-profile) in the Horn of Africa to the brink of extreme appetite.
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The variety of Kenyans in need of food aid in March rose by almost 70 percent over a duration of 8 months to 1.1 million, largely due to bad rains, according to government figures.
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With practically half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a major scarcity of rain, humanitarian firms are alerting of increased hunger in the months ahead.
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"Only light rains is forecast through June ... and this is not anticipated to relieve dry spell in impacted locations of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its most current report.
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"Well below-average crop production, poor animals body conditions, and increased regional food prices are anticipated, which will reduce bad households' access to food."
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In Kitui's Kyuso area, the indications are currently obvious.
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Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as a result of the prolonged drought.
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Villagers complain of trekking longer distances - in some cases more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys loaded with empty jerry cans searching for water.
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Small-scale farmers, the majority of whom are reliant on rain-fed farming, discuss strategies to offer their goats to make ends meet if the harvest is bad.
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BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL
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But not all Kitui's farmers are worried.
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A small but growing number are shedding their [concern](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) of reliance on the weather - and investing in watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme released more than three years back.
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Neighbouring farmers unite to the irrigation system - which includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of [pipelines](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) and 10 litres of [biodiesel -](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) at expenses beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending on the size of the pump.
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The farmers make an initial payment, then pay interest-free regular monthly instalments up until the overall is paid off. They purchase the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.
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Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the biodiesel pump enabled him to irrigate a bigger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of vegetables consisting of maize, tomatoes, [spinach](https://www.proactiveinvestors.com.au/ASX:MBT/Mission-NewEnergy-Ltd) and [sweet potatoes](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608).
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"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in three months. With the biodiesel pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," stated Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo town, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY
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Other farmers indicate the plan as a major advantage in [assisting enhance](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) their output.
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"The instalment plan is good. Most farmers do not have the cash and can not quickly get a loan to buy a pump like this," stated Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue biodiesel pump.
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"Having a plan like this helps us a lot. Our yields are great which suggests we can pay off the cost of the pump slowly in little amounts, and have cash left over to pay the school fees."
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Zaynagro's effort is still in its early stages, with few farmers having repaid the complete expense of the pumps.
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But such [biofuel](https://www.zoominfo.com/c/mission-newenergy/346542889) schemes are appealing since they develop a circular economy by turning waste to biofuel for profit, said Sanjoy Sanyal, [senior associate](https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-178469/company/) for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.
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The simplicity of the design - easy-to-use, robust technology, guaranteed supply of [biodiesel](https://www.abnnewswire.net/companies/en/31347/%E0%B8%9A%E0%B8%A3%E0%B8%B4%E0%B8%A9%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%97-Mission-NewEnergy-%E0%B8%88%E0%B8%B3%E0%B8%81%E0%B8%B1%E0%B8%94.html/4) integrated with a [pay-as-you-go scheme](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) - could help electrify rural Africa, he said.
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"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices in the world. The key issue is checking concepts and approaches in a collaborative fashion," stated Sanyal.
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"Other cotton ginning factories in the region must try and gain from this experiment. Banks need to begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers require to support experimentation."
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($1 = 101.3000 Kenyan shillings) (Reporting by Nita Bhalla @nitabhalla, Editing by Claire Cozens. Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, residential or commercial property rights and environment change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
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