Cotton Waste Biofuel Powers Farmers To Fight Drought In Kenya

By Nita Bhalla


KITUI, Kenya, June 6 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Kenyan farmer Abel Mutie Mathoka thought it needs to be a joke when he was informed he could irrigate his drought-hit crops more inexpensively, cleanly and effectively using 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!" chuckled Mathoka, crouching down to inspect the watermelons on his 10-acre (four-hectare) shared plot in Ituri village in Kenya's southeast Kitui county.


"But it works," he stated, walking over to a close-by tree and plucking a large green pawpaw. "Irrigation with this biodiesel water pump has helped me get greater yields, specifically throughout drought periods."


Mathoka stated his earnings 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 less expensive than routine diesel.


The biodiesel he is using is not just good news for him - it is likewise excellent news for the world.


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


That implies that in addition to being cleaner and more affordable than regular fuel, it is more sustainable than other biofuels due to the fact that no additional land is required to produce it.


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


"Our biodiesel originates from squashing cotton seeds left over as waste after ginning - the process of separating the seeds from raw cotton," said Taher Zavery, handling director of Zaynagro Industries Ltd, the Kitui-based business producing the biodiesel.


"We started producing and using 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 local farmers for watering."


More than 1,200 farmers in Kitui have actually so far bought biodiesel pumps for irrigation as part of an initiative introduced by Zaynagro in 2015, stated Zavery.


DRY RIVER BEDS


Climate modification is taking a toll across east Africa and significantly irregular weather condition is becoming commonplace in nations such as Kenya, Somalia, Uganda and Ethiopia, leading to lower rains.


The recurring droughts are ruining crops and pastures and are starving animals - pushing millions of people in the Horn of Africa to the brink of extreme cravings.


The variety of Kenyans in requirement of food aid in March rose by almost 70 percent over a duration of eight months to 1.1 million, mainly due to poor rains, according to federal government figures.


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


"Only light rains is anticipated through June ... and this is not anticipated to alleviate drought in affected areas of Kenya and Somalia," said the Famine Early Warning Systems Network in its most current report.


"Well below-average crop production, poor livestock body conditions, and increased regional food prices are prepared for, which will minimize poor households' access to food."


In Kitui's Kyuso area, the signs are currently evident.


Rivers, water pans and dams are drying up as a result of the prolonged dry spell.


Villagers suffer trekking longer distances - often more than 10 km (6 miles) with their donkeys packed with empty jerry cans looking for water.


Small-scale farmers, most of whom depend on rain-fed farming, go over plans to offer their goats to make ends satisfy if the harvest is poor.


BATTLING DROUGHT WITH BIODIESEL


But not all Kitui's farmers are stressed.


A little however growing number are shedding their concern of reliance on the weather - and investing in irrigation systems powered by Zaynagro's cotton seed biodiesel through a pay-as-you-go scheme launched more than three years ago.


Neighbouring farmers unite to purchase the irrigation system - which consists of the biodiesel pump, 12 metres of pipelines and 10 litres of biodiesel - at costs beginning from 32,000 shillings, depending upon the size of the pump.


The farmers make a preliminary payment, then pay interest-free month-to-month instalments till the overall is paid off. They buy the biodiesel to run the pumps from Zaynagro at 80 shillings a litre.


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


"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.


CIRCULAR ECONOMY


Other farmers indicate the scheme as a major benefit in helping enhance their output.


"The instalment scheme is excellent. Most farmers do not have the money 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.


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


Zaynagro's initiative is still in its early phases, with few farmers having actually repaid the full cost of the pumps.


But such biofuel plans are appealing because they a circular economy by turning waste to biofuel for earnings, stated Sanjoy Sanyal, senior partner for Clean Energy Finance at the World Resources Institute.


The simpleness of the model - easy-to-use, robust technology, ensured supply of biodiesel integrated with a pay-as-you-go scheme - might assist amaze rural Africa, he stated.


"There is a mosaic of sustainable energy choices worldwide. The crucial concern is checking concepts and methods in a collaborative fashion," stated Sanyal.


"Other cotton ginning factories in the area must try and gain from this experiment. Banks need to begin try out loans to groups of farmers. International donors and investors need 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, ladies's and LGBT+ rights, human trafficking, home rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)