George Y. Obeng

Impact of solar photovoltaic lighting on indoor air smoke in off-grid rural Ghana

Nearly 75 % of the rural households in Ghana depend on kerosene lanterns as the main source of lighting after sunset. However, concerns are being expressed on indoor air smoke and heat as well as fire hazards associated with the use of kerosene lanterns. Largely as a result of socio-economic and environmental benefits, public solar photovoltaic (PV) electrification projects have been implemented to provide alternative lighting in off-grid communities in Ghana. The purpose of this paper was to assess the impacts of solar PV lighting on indoor air smoke in rural households. Using the with/without comparison method, 209 solar-electrified and non-electrified households were surveyed to assess impacts. The study results indicated that solar PV lighting is likely to reduce the proportion of household members being affected by indoor smoke from kerosene lanterns by 50 %. Furthermore, solar PV lighting is likely to reduce the proportion of household members who get blackened nostrils from soot associated with kerosene lanterns by nearly a third. This paper maintains that, though the effects identified by this study may be short-term, further research is needed to investigate both the medium- and long-term effects on human health. Given the low income levels of the rural poor and the costs involved in maintaining PV systems, effective policies and incentives for low-income earners are fundamental steps toward improvement in quality of life and widening of access.

Solar photovoltaic electrification and rural energy-poverty in Ghana

The relationship between solar photovoltaic (PV) rural electrification and energy-poverty was assessed using social, economic and environmental indicator-based questionnaires in 96 solar-electrified and 113 non-electrified households in rural Ghana. The purpose was to assess the energy-poverty status of households with and without solar PV systems, and to determine the factors that explain energy-poverty in off-grid rural households. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to construct energy-poverty index scores (EPISs). On the basis of the results of the EPISs, about 80% of the non-electrified households were assessed as relatively energy-poor compared with only 10% of the solar-electrified households. Three significant indicators increased linearly with increasing energy-poverty index score (EPIS) and therefore explained the variation in EPIS. They are monthly savings on lighting (r 2 = 0.214), number of children who can sit around lighting (r 2 = 0.388) and amount paid to obtain lighting/electricity system (r 2 = 0.261). On the contrary, EPIS decreased linearly with increasing monthly costs of kerosene, candles and dry-cell batteries. This indicates that increasing expenditure on kerosene, candles and dry-cell batteries is likely to affect household savings and investment in quality energy delivery systems that can increase EPIS. To improve EPIS, households should invest a bit more in reliable and quality energy delivery systems, which can help to improve their quality of life. The use of EPISs successfully demonstrated the difference in energy-poverty status between households with and without solar PV. This lays down a basis of understanding the relationship between solar PV rural electrification and energy-poverty improvement in off-grid communities.

Rice Cultivation and Greenhouse Gas Emissions: A Review and Conceptual Framework with Reference to Ghana

In spite of the intention of governments to increase the use of renewable energy in electricity supply, particularly the use of solar photovoltaic (PV) for energy poverty reduction in rural and peri-urban areas of Africa, there is relatively little information on how solar PV electrification impacts on energy poverty reduction. Therefore, there is a gap in the literature and hence the need for continuous research. Using Ghana as a reference country, the historical trend, donor cooperation and other aspects of solar PV rural electrification are discussed . The paper illustrates the intersectoral linkages of solar PV electrification and indicators on education, health, information acquisition, agriculture and micro-enterprises. It also reviews sustainability related issues including costs and market barriers, subsidies, stakeholders involvement, political and policy implications, which are critical factors for sustainable market development of solar PV and other renewables. Finally, a common framework is developed to provide a basic understanding of how solar PV electrification impacts on energy-poverty. This framework provides a structure of the interrelated concepts and principles relevant to the issues under review.

Apportionment of Funds to Mining-Impacted Communities within Forest Reserve Environments in Ghana

This paper uses risk assessment of socio-economic and environmental indicators to develop criteria for apportionment (AP) of funds to communities impacted by mining activities within a Forest Reserve environment in Ghana. A t-test statistic of assessment data shows that factors such as; cost of living, health conditions, air pollution, water contamination, land degradation and distance (D km) are significant. Ratings of the factors using a 1-5 intensity scale to determine risk values (RV) for communities indicate that RV of 25 requires no remediation, while (25-RV) is remediation factor. A long-term AP criterion using the ranked risk (RR) values is defined by the equation APRR%=7.45-0.233(RR) with R2 of 0.961. Based on this criterion, communities D and S which are located at 1.5 and 16.1km from the mining focus have APRR values of 7.23% and 2.26%, respectively. APRR% in relation to distance is defined by the equation APRR%=7.22-0.281(D) with R2 of 0.647. RR-dependent distance equation (APD %) is used to deduce a short-term criterion defined by K*APD%=4.13-0.097(RR), where K is a constant. The expression of (APRR-K*APD) represents the residual apportionment required after a long-term assessment. The findings in this research demonstrate well-defined patterns that can be replicated for similar future projects.