Charcoal, firewood businesses boom in Plateau despite government clampdown

The danger of global warming stemming from human activities like tree felling, deforestation, pollution, industrialisation among others has continued to grow more concerns. Despite the ecological implications of felling trees, which leads to habitat loss, soil erosion and disruption of the natural balance of an ecosystem, affecting plant and animal life, people continued to fell […]

The danger of global warming stemming from human activities like tree felling, deforestation, pollution, industrialisation among others has continued to grow more concerns.

Despite the ecological implications of felling trees, which leads to habitat loss, soil erosion and disruption of the natural balance of an ecosystem, affecting plant and animal life, people continued to fell trees to produce charcoal for energy.

Local charcoal and firewood sellers have continued to remain indifferent to the situation as they continue to make brisk business from the felling of trees.

Studies have shown that charcoal and firewood usage contribute significantly to global warming, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa where they provide over 70% of the total energy consumption, and that the unsustainable harvesting of wood for charcoal and firewood production leads to forest degradation.

In Plateau State, there is a high rate of charcoal and firewood usage and the business thrives very well. There is even a charcoal market in Jos the state capital, where people come from many parts of the state and even beyond to buy charcoal.

This is despite the clamp down on the suppliers by the state government.

Our correspondent who visited the market spoke with some of the women, who said selling charcoal is their means of livelihood and business, and they need to survive because there is no other alternative job either, and the government has not provided any alternative to them.

The chairperson of the charcoal market in Jos, Ruth Sunday, said the charcoal depot has already spread in Jos and other parts of the state because of the increasing numbers of patronage from the people.

She said that many people who sell other goods have also resorted to selling charcoal, and have converted even their shops and homes to charcoal depot, adding that even the supplies of the charcoals at the main market are now supplying to the small sellers in their shops, homes as well as sell to users directly.

According to Mrs Sunday, even though the charcoal business has now become an all-comers affair and has drastically affected their own business at the center, it still shows that an increasing number of people are now using charcoal for their cooking more than ever before.

“They supply us with charcoal from Bauchi State and Nasarawa State. And in Plateau State, they supply us from Jingir and Quan’ Pan local government areas. We do understand that the government sometimes clamps down on them for cutting down trees and converting it to charcoal, saying it has an environmental impact,” she said.

“But what does the governor want them to do? We don’t have any other work and the government doesn’t provide jobs, so what should we be doing? So my advice is that the government should leave us to continue because that’s the only way we can survive, take care of families, pay bills and be alive.”

She however called on the government to come to their aid and allow their business to flourish so that they can take care of our families.

“If the government should ban cutting down trees and making charcoal then they want us to die because we don’t have anything else to do.”

Another charcoal seller, Sarfatu Aziz, said many people come to buy charcoal because of the fact that gas is very expensive now and the children use it arbitrarily and always waste it, so they preferred to use charcoal more.

She said they often buy a bag of charcoal at N6,500 and sell it at N8,000 or thereabouts.

She said some of the charcoal brings out smoke whenever it is used and it is as a result of the kind of wood that is being used for the charcoal.

“For the charcoal not to bring out smoke, whenever it is lit outside, salt would be poured on it before taking it inside and by putting the salt it will not bring out smoke again.

“And if the government says there is any environmental hazard from cutting down trees and making charcoal with it, we are not aware, and we will keep supporting charcoal use because of its business and health benefits for us,” she said.

Also, a firewood seller in Jos South, Jummai Amos, said she’s not aware of anything about global warming or any illegitimacy in cutting down trees in the bush firewood with it but knows that government clampdown of producers from time to time.

According to her, she has been in the business for more than 15 years and that’s what she has been using to take care of her family, adding that should there be any environmental impact in cutting down trees the government should not only run awareness campaigns on the risk or clampdown on people making the firewood but should provide an alternative means of livelihood for the people otherwise it would be hard to stop.

Commenting on the matter, Ubaidurrahman Sulaiman said the foremost solution to the tree felling menace is to enhance the other means of producing charcoal for household use.

Sulaiman is one of the members of the 2019 40-team shortlisted for the $1 million Hult Prize, the world largest student competition and running the Brycoal Factory in Kano, which produces charcoal from sugarcane peel, coconut shells and palm kernel shells.

And Brycoal happened to be the team’s project, then undergraduate students of Bayero University, Kano (BUK). The innovation, which took them thus far is a solar technology that allows for aforementioned crop waste to be utilised for job creation in communities, through the production of charcoal briquettes.Sulaiman said the negative impacts of global warming is high and Nigeria must lead with bold initiatives that preserve the nation, secure the environment and help contribute to safeguard the planet’s future.

He called on the government to intensify the quest to seek alternative use of energy and of making charcoal rather than from cutting down trees, adding that they are willing to offer assistance in the area of intimating stakeholders on their project of using other crops waste to make charcoal.

Reacting, the Head of Unit, Water Resources and Climate Department at the National Centre for Remote Sensing, Jos, Dr. Onoja Sunday Desmond said weather people understand it or not, the impact of global warming is already showing in Plateau State, especially in Jos the state capital and other cold areas in the state.

He confirmed that it’s already a known fact that Jos is not as cold as it used to be and that it’s getting warmer, compared to the 60s, 70s , 80s and even 90s when Jos is very cold.

According to him, one of the reasons for this is tree felling from where charcoal and firewood is made, in many communities in Jos, it is a common site to see people selling firewood and charcoal on the street and different corners.

He called on the appropriate authorities to take the necessary action to address this manners otherwise it would keep developing until the full impact of global warming will be felt.

When Daily Trust contacted the Commissioner, Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Mineral Development, Peter Kanang Gwom, on what they have been doing to checkmate the development, he said he will respond to the questions sent but fails to do so before the publication.