Saturday, January 15, 2011

Biogas in Nepal: Time to Strike Down Cultural Taboos!

The concept of Biogas is not new to Nepal. I was aware of it back in the early 90s. But, the importance of its use now is much more vital than back in the 90s. The social and cultural stigma attached to it is still alive, especially amongst the higher caste. Some of these informal barricades will take time to fall, however, the government, NGOs, and INGOs should increase the educational outreach and make their efforts much more efficient. Also, there should be a higher subsidy provided by the government to install biogas system, which will allow more families to afford one. The one-time cost should not deter our efforts as there is a long run positive benefit to the society at large of implementing this system--*reduction in deforestation (CLICKHERE) *reduction of carbon dioxide emission *reduction of health issues (mostly respiratory) for families translating into lower social cost of health care *better health of workers and student means better productivity, etc. 
Here is a video of biogas use in southern Nepal. Thanks to Dr. Loren Byrne, Roger Williams University, for bringing this to my attention. Spread the word!  


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