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Data was gathered with semi-structured questionnaires from 492 charcoal producers in three rural communities (Adaprase, Komfourkrom, and Papaase) in the Bono East Region of Ghana. This study assesses the demographics of charcoal producers, species used for charcoal, and how producers intend to sustain the charcoal industry in terms of acquisition of wood resources/raw materials. Seven major species, namely Vitellaria paradoxa (Shea tree), Anogeissus leiocarpus (Kane), Pterocarpus erinaceus (Krayie), Erythrophleum ivorense (Potrodom), Afzelia africana (Papao), Parkia biglobosa (Sorono), and Daniella oliveri (Senya) were identified for charcoal production. Among these species, Shea tree was ranked first in exploitation and used by about 80% of the entire population of charcoal producers in the researched communities and puts the future of this species at risk if no intervention. Meanwhile, shea tree has been identified as a very high economic value in Ghana. In addition, people with various genders, educational backgrounds, and occupations were engaged in charcoal production, but most of them were male and between the ages of 15–47. Most charcoal producers intend to establish plantations to sustain the industry while others believe in natural regeneration of species. The charcoal industry serves as a major source of income for over 90% of the inhabitants in these communities and is it therefore not recommend-able to close the industry but incorporate interventions towards sustainability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An attempt to implement new charcoal-production technology in Palestinian villages in the West Bank, Jenin area, is examined in this research. The 'retort' system avoided air pollution associated with traditional kilns by recycling flue gases. The attempt was made against the backdrop of the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict and life under Israeli military rule. The study analyzes the relationship between supporters and opponents of the new technology and the moves leading to rural development. Based on a survey, in-depth interviews and field observations, the research identifies environmental, political, socio-cultural and economic interests, power relations and the interdependence between conflicting parties. The findings reveal the leading hamulas' (extended families) use of resistance tactics against the technology to preserve their dominant status within the socio-cultural structure, while traditional kiln usage was prevented by Israel. As a consequence, new strategies were adopted by various parties. Flexible negotiation led to an agreed resolution that opened new opportunities of social mobility and brought economic and environmental prosperity to the rural area. The study contributes to the resistance to innovation theory in traditional rural communities. • Palestinian opposition to Israeli rule expressed by resistance to new technology. • Resistance tactics used to preserve leading hamulas' dominance of social structure. • Tobacco farming opened new opportunities of social mobility for the disadvantaged. • Flexible negotiation between conflicting parties led to sustainable rural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study of charcoal production pits (pit kilns), excavated in central Belgium, provides information on Early and High Medieval woodland dynamics and human impact on the forest composition in the Northwest-European Lowland. Radiocarbon dating of charcoal recovered from the kilns demonstrates two different phases of charcoal production, one during the Early Medieval period (c. 650 AD–950 AD) and one during the High Medieval period (c. 1040 AD–1260 AD). Charcoal identification shows that the Early Medieval kilns are dominated by beech (Fagus sylvatica) while the younger kilns are dominated by oak (Quercus sp.), indicating a shift in woodland composition. This shift is likely to be a consequence of the earliest charcoal production activities, which resulted in the degradation of the primeval beech-dominated forest to a secondary forest dominated by oak, and intermixed with other more light-demanding taxa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We provide new distribution maps for 20 high-value African tropical tree species. • Water availability, elevation and soil fertility are important for distribution. • Charcoal and timber tree species' distributions are affected by human activities. • Fire was not a variable of importance for the distribution of these tree species. • First high-resolution distribution maps to support sustainable management in Zambia. The sustainable management of dry forests and woodlands of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is crucial for the SSA economy and people's livelihoods but it remains a key challenge to address. Maps of tree species distributions of economic value are lacking for the region; yet, this information is essential for supporting sustainable use. We capitalized on new nation-wide field survey data for the Republic of Zambia (Southern Africa) to generate the first suite of baseline species distribution models (SDMs) for 20 tree species of economic significance to support for sustainable management and conservation. We employed one regression- and two machine learning-based techniques to model and predict tree distribution. For each species, we compared the three model results for the relative importance of different predictive variables, revealing the most important predictors of each species niche and providing insight into how human activities influence current tree species distribution. Overall, environmental predictors that best explained tree species distribution were related to water availability, including mean potential evapotranspiration (PET), annual rainfall, and the variation in PET, as well as elevation and soil fertility. Human impact on distribution was notable for tree species used for charcoal and timber, including the proximity to roads for charcoal-favored species and the proximity to settlement for timber species. For all tree species, fire did not stand out as a variable of importance, contrary to expectations. The SDMs generated from this study will provide essential baseline information to support national conservation and management efforts, especially for preferred timber and charcoal species for which selective harvesting has had an impact on their distribution. Our results highlight the importance of rainfalls for the distribution of tree species in this seasonally dry region and calls for future research to forecast the impacts of climate change on habitat suitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The metal kiln with heat distribution pipes is a new design of charcoal kiln for high quality charcoal and wood vinegar production. It was made of sheet steel. Its body was covered with fiberglass and galvanized steel as an insulator with the size of 1.5 m height and 2 m diameter. There were six exhaust chimneys connecting to a condenser unit for wood vinegar condensation. A raw material for testing efficiency of charcoal production was bamboo. The metal kiln contained about 1446 kg of bamboo with a moisture content of 30%. The process used 279 kg fire wood. It took 27 h for heating up to >600 °C, and cooled down naturally within 15 h. The products were 315 kg bamboo charcoal, 12 kg ash, and 900 L crude bamboo vinegar. There was no unburnt bamboo. In other words they were 24% good bamboo charcoal, 0% unburnt bamboo and 1% ash. Bamboo charcoal characterization followed the ASTM D7582-15 and ASTM D5865-10. Bamboo charcoal showed 8.5% moisture content, 7.7% volatile matters, 81% fixed carbon, 11.3% ash and 30,347 kJ kg−1 heat values. Highlights • New design of metal kiln for charcoal production with heat distribution pipe inside the kiln for better heat flow. • High efficiency for charcoal production with high yield charcoal. • Good quality of charcoal with high fixed carbon and low volatile matters. • High volume of wood vinegar. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impacts of charcoal production on woodland were assessed in the Forest-Savannah Transition Zone of Ghana to facilitate policy formulation for a win-win situation for both sustainable woodland management and charcoal production. Twenty-three harvested sites in two charcoal producing communities were assessed in terms of the extent of harvested sites, changes in biomass carbon stock and tree basal area. The boundary of each site earmarked for charcoal production was mapped with a hand-held Global Positioning System, and the diameters at breast height ( d bh ) and the heights of trees of d bh ≥ 5 cm were measured, prior to harvest. The extent of harvested sites was compared with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change criterion of “devegetation” using Wilcoxon test, while the biomass carbon and basal area of the harvested trees were compared with those of the remnant trees using Mann Whitney t-test. The median of the extent of harvested sites ( M = 0.23 ha, P = 1.00) was significantly higher than 0.05 ha, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change minimum criterion for “devegetation”, while the difference between median basal area of harvested and remnant trees was significantly greater than zero (G h − G r = 2.6 m 2 ha −1 ; P = 0.001) at 95% significant level. The Mann Whitney test also provided sufficient evidence (n = 23; M hc − M rc = 12.07 t ha − 1 ; P < 0.001) against the null hypothesis that the difference between the medians of the aboveground biomass carbon in the harvested and remnant is zero at 95% significant level. On the basis of the IPCC definition of “devegetation” and the changes in basal area, it suggests that intensive charcoal production has the potential of degrading woodlands. Nonetheless, it is worth highlighting that, none of the harvested sites had zero basal area or biomass carbon after harvest, which is a significant revelation for sustainable woodland management for charcoal production. The study further revealed that the extent of harvested site is not an appropriate measure of the impact of charcoal production on woodland since it does not account for the number and sizes of the trees harvested. Therefore, the impact of charcoal production on woodland may not be as alarming as it is generally perceived when the extent of harvested site is used as a measure. The impact of charcoal production is often over-generalized and that, “devegetation” of harvested sites is an issue of post-harvest woodland management and not the impact of charcoal production per se . Therefore, the evidence of the impact of charcoal production on woodlands shown in this study should be basis for sustainable woodlands management and not basis for halting charcoal production in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Charcoal is among the most important domestic fuels in many countries of Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Its production has been conventionally considered as an agricultural off-season activity to supplement household income and cope with harvest failures. This study used primary data at the household level from an important charcoal supplying dryland region in Kenya to evaluate if income from charcoal contributes to wealth accumulation. The findings show that small-scale producers were more dependent on income from charcoal and casual labor, the two sectors whose income was uncorrelated to wealth index. This group was the poorest among the producer groups and vis-à-vis non-producers in terms of both total income and wealth level. In contrast, large-scale producers derived about half of their income from charcoal production but had more diversified livelihood sources especially in business and agriculture. Despite the fact that charcoal income was not directly correlated with the wealth index, large-scale producers derived absolutely large income from charcoal activities which made them well-off among all the categories of households. The findings challenges the dichotomous policy debates on either promoting or banning charcoal production but necessitate better targeted policy interventions, which explicitly consider differences in charcoal producers to properly target social goals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mont Lozère, located in the French Massif Central region, provides an exceptional context in which to research the impact that charcoal production and metallurgy had on woodlands, along with the role that these activities played in changing the mountain landscape. This study provides an insight into the land use, forest management methods and metallurgical practices in the area during the Middle Ages (11th to 15th centuries). Medieval charcoal burning platforms, archaeological remains that have often been neglected in the past as a source of historical information, along with nearby smelting sites, were identified, sampled and analysed. In this paper, spatial analyses, radiocarbon dating and anthracological and dendro-anthracological studies have been combined in a unique manner. The results reveal that charcoal burners practiced beech coppicing, where the species and diameter of wood used remained the same over a period of four centuries. It is proposed that this form of metallurgical forest management be considered an early example of a sustainable utilisation of natural resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Charcoal production in tropical regions of the world is often perceived to have devastating ecological and environmental effects and governments, public forestry institutions and non government organizations have been particularly concerned about these charcoal-related impacts. The most commonly cited impact is deforestation, i.e., the clearance of forest or woodland. At a small spatial scale this may indeed be the case but on a larger landscape scale charcoal production most frequently results only in forest degradation. Much of the charcoal in tropical countries is commonly made in traditional earth and pit kilns with a wood-to-charcoal conversion rate of about 20% and in 2009 the contribution of charcoal production to deforestation in tropical countries with the highest rates of deforestation is estimated at less than 7%. A large proportion of the area utilized for charcoal production has the potential for rapid forest recovery especially with good post-harvest management. There are conflicting reports on the effects of deforestation on catchment hydrology with the majority of small catchment studies indicating increased runoff and low evapotranspiration while studies of large basins have shown no such changes. Emissions of greenhouse gases from charcoal production in tropical ecosystems in 2009 are estimated at 71.2milliont for carbon dioxide and 1.3milliont for methane. The failure of past charcoal policies to address environmental impacts and achieve sustainability can be attributed to erroneous assumptions and predictions by national and international organizations regarding wood-based fuels. Possible ways of enhancing charcoal policies'' legitimacy and therefore effective implementation are multi-stakeholder participation and demonstration of coherence with globally recognized principles, goals and relevant international regimes, such as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In this way charcoal production can significantly contribute to poverty reduction and environmental sustainability. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

• Charcoal kiln soils double the amount of Soil Organic Carbon and Total Nitrogen. • The different woodland types in the study have the same benefits in SOC and TN sequestration. • SOC content found in the studied woodlands is less than half of other semi-arid woodlands. • The findings are important for the SSA countries implementing monitoring, report and verification methods (MRV). African woodland ecosystems function as important reservoirs for soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN). However, these ecosystem functions are particularly sensitive to social-ecological factors, the impacts of which remain understudied. Here, we examine how SOC and TN and other soil properties vary across woodland types and how charcoal production, the main source of woodland disturbance in the study area, changes these factors in dry woodlands of southern Africa, focusing on three woodland ecosystems that represent the main types in southern Mozambique: Androstachys forest, Combretum woodland and Mopane woodlands. Drawing on data from soil surveys at 0–5 cm and 0–30 cm depth in different vegetation types as well as both distant from and proximate to sites of active charcoal production, we estimate that these woodlands in Mabalane District store on average 19 ± 10 (±SE) Mg ha−1 of SOC, and 2.2 ± 0.9 Mg ha−1 of TN at 0–30 cm, significantly lower than values reported for other woodlands in the region such as Miombo. Our analysis shows that the woodland types do not differ in terms of the amount of SOC and TN stored in soil, and that soil in the charcoal kilns had twice the amount of SOC (30.0 ± 1.8 Mg ha−1) and TN (4.5 ± 0.5 Mg ha−1) compared with non-charcoal soils. This study adds to our understanding of the impact of charcoal production on soil SOC and TN in dry woodlands of southern Africa, and demonstrates some localised impacts of charcoal production. We discuss the implications of our findings in the light of emerging carbon-based payments for ecosystem services programmes in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]