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Bamboo as an alternative source of energy

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There are over a 1000 species of bamboo

• “Bamboo is an amazing and versatile, rapidly renewable resource”

- BigBamboo; Ecuador, South America

• Bamboo farming is a lead towards the right direction in the management of the environment; - Enep objective

• Bamboo farming integrates economic development and environmental protection; - Enep objective– Ensure Environmental Sustainability (MDG)

• Bamboo farming supports sustainable livelihoods;– Eradicate Extreme Hunger and Poverty (MDG)– Achieve Universal Primary Education (MDG)

• “The bamboo seedling can sow a future of prosperity” – INBAR

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Some species are more relevant to us than others

• Bamboo is the common term applied to a broad group of over (1250 species) which varies from small annuals to giant, solid timber bamboo ranging from 10 cm to 40 m in height.

• Bamboo nicknamed the wonder plant, is the strongest and fastest growing woody plant on earth, and supplies a global trade worth US$2 billion per year.

• Bamboo is already in everyday use by about 2.5 billion people, mostly for fiber and food.

• Literature on bamboo productivity is scarce.

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OXYTENANTHERA ABYSSINICA (Solid bamboo)

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Botanical description:• Oxytenanthera abyssinica (lowland bamboo) is a

clump forming, solid stemmed bamboo. It is a drought resistant shrub or small tree which survives even in the savannah woodland and in semi-arid wooded grasslands.

• It grows with a minimum annual rainfall of between 350 and 800 mm.

• Its been seen to grow in an altitude of up to 2000m above sea-level, but mainly at 300–1500m. It torrelates average annual temperatures of between 20 to 27°C, with monthly average daily maxima of 30 to 36°C and, daily minimal of 7 to 17°C.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

• The culms of this species, mature at an early age of 3 to 4 years, and this makes the cutting age relatively short.

• On one acre, you can plant up to 100 seedlings with a spacing of 5 m by 5 m square. From the third season onwards, several shoots are produced annually. Rhizomes penetrate 30cm in 3 years.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Growth and development:

• Clump longevity for this species is estimated at 40 years.

• The stems mature in 3 years and may survive for 8 years, but they are over-mature and unsuitable for harvesting from 6 years of age onwards.

• Clump diameters range from 1m to 8m, and clumps may contain 20–200 (exceptionally up to 300) stems with 23 internoted of 32cm.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Diseases:• Leaf rust (Kweilingia divina, synonym: Dasturella

divina) which can be controlled using any broad spectrum fungicide.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

An overview of the advantages of this bamboo:• A plantations of O. Abyssinica can be a continuous source of • bamboo charcoal briquettes for household cooking to prevent

deforestation, • Firewood for tea factories, • Pulp for paper industries, • Hardboard, particle board and pulpwood pipes, • Crates, fish-traps, • Horticultural or garden stakes, • Canoe poles, arrow and spear shafts, • Leaves as fodder, • Plants for hedges, • Windbreaks, • Ornamental plants, • Soil erosion control • Rehabilitation of degraded sites,• Biomass production, • Carbon credit for major investors etc.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo: • It is estimated that this bamboo species can yield 10-33 tons of dry stems per hector per year.

• A pure stand of Oxytenanthera abyssinica contains up to 750 clumps and 30,000 stems per hectare.

• Each clump is harvested once or twice a year. The minimum number of nine meters tall poles per harvest, is approx. 20-35. Each pole can sell for up to Kes 200.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • This superbamboo can produce a total biomass of 19,000 kg/ha and upto 9-10 tons of bamboo charcoal per hectare per year with a minimum rainfall of 350 - 800 mm.

• An acre of land will fetch charcoal worth about Kes 73,000 per year, in an arid region in Kenya.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • High volume of quality raw material for building, manufacture of wooden products like tiles and, perquets, toothpicks, matchsticks, incense-sticks, scaffolding sleepers, flower/horticultural stands, industrial wood for energy e.g. in tea factories.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinicaAdvantages of this bamboo cont..: • This clump-forming bamboo grows with a robust rhizome of up to 10 cm in diameter conducive for fencing poles. Each club 600/4 ft poles, per year x Ksh 200 = Ksh 120,000 per year.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • Its shoots are edible while the voliage can be used as animal fodder.

Supporting sustainable livelihood;Eradicate Extreme Hunger and Poverty (MDG)

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • Sap from shoot tips is used for brewing alcoholic drinks ("ulanzi", 5 - 5.5% alcohol) similar in taste to beer.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • We have seen this species being used as medicine. Rhizomes used in treating dysentery, leaves in treating diabetes, colic and rheumatism, roots in treating skin diseases, leaf decoction in treating polyuria, oedema and albuminuria.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • Bamboo plays a very valuable environmental role. Its complex root system, can act as a fantastic water filter, removing nutrients and dangerous poisons such as heavy metals before they get into the food chain.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • It can be used for bamboo-based board’s applications such as particleboards, medium density fiber board, strand boards and for pulp and paper manufacturing.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica

Advantages of this bamboo cont..: • A processing plant can produce a panel board of 4.8cm x 5m and up to 300 panel boards per day. Each board will sell at $12.75 amounting to a daily sale of Kes 313,650. The total labor and material cost for one panel is $5.09.

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Bamboo has the highest calorific value compared to any other wooded biomass

Fig. 4 Temperature in the bamboo during the Process

Project Completion Report on Torrefaction of Bamboo, October, 2006, Advanced Bioresidue Energy Technologies Society (ABETS) Combustion, Gasification & Propulsion Laboratory (CGPL) Department of Aerospace Engineering Indian Institute of ScienceWorld Bank press, 2006; pg. 14.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinicaAreas of consinderation and advocacy: • NGOs, multilateral organizations and UN agencies that support the

empowerment of women should consider buying seedlings and distribute.

• NGOs, multilateral organizations and UN agencies that work with refugees should establish medium size bamboo forests for refugees and IDPs.

• The media should promote the use of bamboo by publishing an article on bamboo each month. Kitil farm can provide such articles.

• Companies that require thermal energy and electrical energy to sustain their operations should consider bamboo as a alternative source of biofuel.

• County Gov. should factor in their budgets financing of sustainable sources of biofuel and charcoal briquettes (black gold) by buying the solid bamboo seedlings and establish County Bamboo Nurseries. Total to replicate.

• Multilateral Companies like Total and others, should now lead by selecting bamboo as the preferred solution to poverty, deforestation, ecosystem and environmental degradation.

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica• Miti ni mali but Bamboo ni mali zaidi !!

• Miti tosha but Bamboo tosha kamili !!because it supports at least 3

MDGs

• The bamboo seedling can sow a future of prosperity !!

Thank you

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Oxytenanthera abyssinica• Kitil farm is a licensed open quarantine which operates

in Kenya. We grow bamboo seedlings from seeds and biotechnology - tissue culture. We have a fully functional bamboo laboratory and a bamboo training centre.

• Kitil farm is privately owned and we work in harness with various arms of the government on different projects. We also work closely with specialized private sector companies and consultancies. We have been in existence since 2004. Our operations are based in Isinya, Kajiando District 40 min drive from Nairobi.

• Email: kitilfarm@gmail.com; Website: www.kitilfarm.com• Tel: 0787456156, 0722729630, 0753683129