A Study of Household Energy Consumption and Supply Pattern in Asella Town

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Date

2000-05

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Addis Ababa University

Abstract

The consumption pattern of household energy shows that multiple fuel use is common in sample households and both traditional biomass fuels (fuelwood, charcoal, BLT and sawdust) and modem fuels (electricity and kerosene) are consumed for domestic purposes in Asella town. Traditional fuels are important energy sources in terms of both expenditure and heat value i.e., they accounts 61.39% of the total expenditure and 86.32% of the total consumption in terms of heat value while modem fuels accounts 38.61% of the total expenditure and 13.68% of the total consumption. The amount of monthly expenditure on different types of household energy vanes depending upon the type of energy sources used which mainly determined by household income. Thus , total consumption of traditional fuels decreases with increasing household income while the consumption of modem fuels increase with IncreasIng Income. The correlation between total expenditure on household energy and household size is +0.3156 while with household income it is +0.6010. It means it is the economic status of the households which determines the expenditure rather than household size. The supply of biomass fuels on one market day and one non-market day indicates that fuel wood, charcoal, BLT, tree roots and dung were supplied by different means of transport: human labor (women's, men and children) and pack animals (donkeys and horses).Acacia and erica arborea were the dominant tree species supplied for charcoal while eucalyptus, erica arborea, hagenia abyssincia and hypericum revolutun were supplied for fuelwood. The distance-woodfuel supply relationship for the town indicates that charcoal and fuel wood were supplied from supply sources located at different distance. Thus, fuel wood and charcoal were supplied from distance located at a radius of 12.2 km and 19.7km respectively from the center ofthe town. The supply of fuelwood and charcoal was a secondary occupation to supplement means of earning income for farmers, housewives, students and also for peoples without any permanent job. Variation in the amount of wood fuel supply and price was found between summer season (June, July and August, 1999) and winter season (Dec., 1999,Jan., and Feb., 2000). Price of charcoal & fuel wood was lower in summer than in winter. Low price in summer season was due to food shortage and climatic condition (failure of rainfall during spring season of 1999). As a results rural people were forced to supply more than the need of urban consumers. High price in winter season was due to shortage of supply i.e., suppliers had other means of livelihood rather than the supply of woodfuel and they were also involved in harvesting activities.

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Keywords

Household Energy Consumption

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