Context
Observation of the countries in the Commission of Central African Forests (COMIFAC) area indicates that the demand for energy wood (wood charcoal and firewood) is and has been (both in the past and at present) a direct cause of deforestation and forest degradation in the Congo basin. Nearly all households in the countries of the Congo basin, as well as other African regions, still use energy wood as their main source of fuel for cooking and heating. Alternative energy sources are either going through a stage of symbolic experimentation and not being promoted (solar energy) or are being produced in low quantities (electricity, fossil fuels).
This request is based on the request for the implementation of an industrial-production project for wood charcoal and associated products by the Republic of the Congo.
CTCN Support
Identify the options for economical industrial conversion of forest waste through projects with a significant positive climatic and social impact:
• Conduct a technical and financial feasibility study taking into account all possible and economically viable waste conversion options
• Conduct an environmental and social impact assessment for the projects identified
• Assess the carbon sequestration potential of the project in keeping with perspectives such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation Programme (REDD+) or the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
• Deliver a bankable business plan
Expected Results
The projects identified will enable the significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions thanks to more efficient waste conversion, increased forest cover, and decreased deforestation rates. It will ultimately contribute to carbon stocks and to the promotion of the circular economy and the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals.
This technical assistance will also help to establish a genuine industrial chain for forest biomass energy conversion using forestry waste and sawmill waste. Later on, this strategy will be strengthened through the operation of private forests planted in order to reduce pressure on native forests and increase the chances of creating a cogeneration plant which uses pyrolysis gases and waste.
