From 10007045ac840f13cd6b77535562037b548e4318 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: jasminecastigl Date: Sat, 11 Jan 2025 08:33:28 +0000 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..c2000a1 --- /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 believed it must be a joke when he was informed he could water his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and effectively using a pump fuelled by cotton waste.
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"Who could believe it's possible to make a fuel much better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" [chuckled](https://www.businessnews.com.au/Company/Mission-NewEnergy) Mathoka, bending down to inspect 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 stated, strolling over to a neighboring tree and plucking a large green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this [biodiesel](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/) water pump has actually assisted me get greater yields, especially during dry spell durations."
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Mathoka stated his revenues had actually doubled in the two years he has been pumping water using biodiesel, which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre cheaper than regular diesel.
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The biodiesel he is using is not simply great news for him - it is also excellent news for the planet.
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Unlike the majority of biofuels, which are derived from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and [jatropha curcas](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html), it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making procedure.
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That means that along with being cleaner and less expensive than routine fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels because no additional land is required to produce it.
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From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159346/mission-newenergy-delivers-maiden-biodiesel-production-to-global-oil-major-24476.html) crops has driven forest neighborhoods off their land and pushed farmers to switch from crops-for-food to more successful crops-for-fuel [- worsening](https://www.bloomberg.com/profile/company/MNELF:US) food lacks.
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"Our biodiesel comes from crushing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," stated Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based company producing the biodiesel.
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"We started producing and using it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now utilize it for our trucks, offer it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and also to regional farmers for irrigation."
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More than 1,200 [farmers](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) in Kitui have so far bought [biodiesel](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) pumps for watering as part of an effort launched by in 2015, stated Zavery.
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DRY RIVER BEDS
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Climate modification is taking a toll throughout east Africa and progressively unpredictable weather condition is ending up being commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.
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The repeating droughts are destroying crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing countless people in the Horn of Africa to the verge of severe cravings.
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The number of [Kenyans](https://www.energy-xprt.com/companies/mission-newenergy-limited-36048) in [requirement](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) of food help in March rose by almost 70 percent over a period of eight months to 1.1 million, mainly due to poor rains, according to government figures.
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With nearly [half Kenya's](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) 47 counties declared to have a serious [shortage](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) of rain, humanitarian firms are alerting of increased hunger in the months ahead.
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"Only light rainfall is forecast through June ... and this is not expected to alleviate dry spell in affected areas of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its newest report.
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"Well below-average crop production, bad livestock body conditions, and increased regional food prices are expected, which will reduce poor families' 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 an [outcome](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy) of the prolonged drought.
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Villagers experience travelling 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 dependent on rain-fed farming, go over strategies to offer their goats to make ends [satisfy](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1463471/000165495419013063/R31.htm) if the harvest is poor.
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BATTLING DROUGHT WITH [BIODIESEL](https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mission-newenergy)
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But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.
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A little but [growing](https://www.intelligentinvestor.com.au/shares/asx-mbt/mission-newenergy-limited/share-price) number are shedding their burden of reliance on the weather - and buying watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme released more than three years earlier.
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Neighbouring farmers unite to purchase the watering system - that includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs 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 monthly [instalments](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) up until the overall is paid off. They buy 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 permitted him to irrigate a larger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a variety of veggies including maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.
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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 village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.
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CIRCULAR ECONOMY
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Other farmers point to the plan as a significant benefit in assisting enhance their output.
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"The instalment plan is great. Most farmers don't have the cash and can not quickly get a loan to purchase a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood beside his blue biodiesel pump.
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"Having a scheme like this assists us a lot. Our yields are great which suggests we can pay off the expense of the pump slowly in small amounts, and have money left over to pay the school fees."
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Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early stages, with few farmers having actually paid back the complete expense of the pumps.
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But such [biofuel](https://www.nasdaq.com/market-activity/ipos/overview?dealId=804419-65608) [schemes](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) are appealing since they create a circular economy by turning waste to [biofuel](https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/159352/mission-newenergy-debt-free-focused-on-biofuel-joint-venture-60797.html) for profit, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.
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The simplicity of the design - easy-to-use, robust innovation, guaranteed supply of biodiesel combined with a pay-as-you-go plan - could [assist electrify](https://forest500.org/rankings/companies/mission-newenergy-limited) rural Africa, he stated.
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"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options on the planet. The essential issue is testing ideas and techniques in a collective style," stated Sanyal.
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"Other cotton ginning factories in the region ought to try and gain from this experiment. Banks need to start try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and financiers need 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, property rights and [environment modification](https://www.zonebourse.com/cours/action/MISSION-NEWENERGY-LIMITED-8557641/). Visit http://news.trust.org)
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