Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers To Fight Drought In Kenya

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By Nita Bhalla


KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka believed it needs to be a joke when he was told he could irrigate his drought-hit crops more cheaply, cleanly and efficiently utilizing a pump fuelled by cotton waste.


"Who could think it's possible to make a fuel better than diesel from cotton seeds? I didn't!" laughed Mathoka, bending down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri town in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.


"But it works," he stated, strolling over to a neighboring tree and plucking a big green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get greater yields, specifically throughout dry spell durations."


Mathoka stated his revenues had doubled in the two years he has actually been pumping water utilizing biodiesel, which is both more effective and 20 shillings ($0.20) per litre more affordable than routine diesel.


The biodiesel he is utilizing is not just good news for him - it is also excellent news for the planet.


Unlike most biofuels, which are stemmed from crops such as maize, sugarcane, soybean, rapeseed and jatropha, it is made from a by-product of the cotton-making process.


That means that as well as being cleaner and cheaper than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels since no extra land is required to produce it.


From Brazil to Indonesia, the rush to cultivate biofuel crops has driven forest communities off their land and pressed farmers to change from crops-for-food to more profitable crops-for-fuel - exacerbating food lacks.


"Our biodiesel originates 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 business producing the biodiesel.


"We started producing and utilizing it to power our cotton ginning factory in 2011. With increased production, we now use it for our trucks, sell it to the United Nations to run some of their buses - and likewise to regional farmers for watering."


More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have up until now invested in biodiesel pumps for watering as part of an effort released by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.


DRY RIVER BEDS


Climate modification is taking a toll across east Africa and significantly erratic weather is ending up being commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rainfall.


The repeating dry spells are damaging crops and pastures and are starving animals - pressing countless individuals in the Horn of Africa to the brink of severe cravings.


The number of in need of food help in March surged by practically 70 percent over a period of 8 months to 1.1 million, mostly due to bad rains, according to federal government figures.


With nearly half Kenya's 47 counties declared to have a severe lack of rain, humanitarian firms are warning of increased appetite in the months ahead.


"Only light rains is forecast through June ... and this is not anticipated to reduce dry spell in affected locations of Kenya and Somalia," stated the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its latest report.


"Well below-average crop production, poor animals body conditions, and increased regional food prices are expected, which will decrease poor households' access to food."


In Kitui's Kyuso location, the signs are currently obvious.


Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as an outcome of the extended dry spell.


Villagers suffer travelling longer ranges - often more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys loaded with empty jerry cans searching for water.


Small-scale farmers, many of whom are reliant on rain-fed agriculture, go over plans to sell their goats to make ends fulfill if the harvest is bad.


BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL


But not all Kitui's farmers are worried.


A small however growing number are shedding their problem of dependence on the weather condition - and purchasing watering systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go plan launched more than three years earlier.


Neighbouring farmers band together to purchase the irrigation system - that includes the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipes and 10 litres of biodiesel - at expenses beginning with 32,000 shillings, depending upon the size of the pump.


The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free monthly instalments until the total is paid off. They purchase the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.


Farmer Alex Babu Kitheka, 39, stated the biodiesel pump allowed him to water a larger part of his one-acre plot, where he grows a range of veggies consisting of maize, tomatoes, spinach and sweet potatoes.


"With a diesel pump, maize yields were lower and I would get 15,000 shillings in 3 months. With the biodiesel pump, I can make 45,000 shillings," said Alex Babu Kitheka, standing near his plot in Ilangilo village, 40 km (25 miles) from Kitui town.


CIRCULAR ECONOMY


Other farmers indicate the scheme as a significant advantage in assisting improve their output.


"The instalment scheme is great. Most farmers don't have the money and can not quickly get a loan to purchase a pump like this," said Maurice Kitheka Munyoki, 41, as he stood next to his blue biodiesel pump.


"Having a plan like this helps us a lot. Our yields are great which indicates we can settle the expense of the pump slowly in percentages, and have cash left over to pay the school fees."


Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with couple of farmers having paid back the complete expense of the pumps.


But such biofuel schemes are appealing since they develop a circular economy by turning waste to biofuel for earnings, said Sanjoy Sanyal, senior associate for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.


The simpleness of the model - user friendly, robust innovation, ensured supply of biodiesel integrated with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might help electrify rural Africa, he stated.


"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy options worldwide. The essential concern is evaluating ideas and techniques in a collaborative style," stated Sanyal.


"Other cotton ginning factories in the region ought to attempt and gain from this experiment. Banks must begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors require to support experimentation."


($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, females's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, property rights and environment modification. Visit http://news.trust.org)

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