Gas must replace charcoal in homes
Jul 04, 2006
The public has something to smile about in the recent national budget read by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ezra Suruma. However, one important aspect seesm to have gone almost unnoticed. This has to do with the VAT tax waive on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as gas.
UMAR MALEH
The public has something to smile about in the recent national budget read by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ezra Suruma. However, one important aspect seesm to have gone almost unnoticed. This has to do with the VAT tax waive on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as gas.
With the current power shortages that have hit the country, LP gas could partly answer our energy problems especially for heating, cooking and lighting requirements in our homes as the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development struggles to fix the problem. Now that VAT has been waived off, LP gas has been made a bit more affordable.
There is however a wrong perception by the public about the gas as being very dangerous and explosive yet if handled well it’s one of the most environmentally friendly forms of energy compared to traditional fuels like charcoal and firewood.
LP gas burns cleanly without smoke or residual particular matter and with relatively low pollution emissions. These inherently “clean†characteristics are especially important for reducing indoor air pollution associated with the traditional fuels.
At the household and workplace level, the use of traditional fuels for cooking and heating can produce large amounts of air-borne pollutants, which cause serious health problems.
In-door air pollution alone is thought to account for 4-5% of global diseases, with women and children suffering most. So switching to LP gas is better alternative since it has negligible emissions of toxic gases that can cause health problems.
Worldwide, more that 200 million metric tones of LP gas are produced each year and supplies are projected to increase 4-5% annually because of realisation of its economic energy potential and its environment benefits.
In a typical low income household a compact LP gas system can offer access to modern alternative sources of cooking, water heating and lighting which are the typical uses of energy in our homes, thereby providing many homes with an opportunity to replace traditional cooking fuels which are a threat to our health and environment. On a commercial scale, LP gas can be applied in food refrigeration, cooking and water heating for restaurants, hotel and institutions. Many hotels have actually embraced LP gas to cut on their energy bills.
On industrial scale, it provides a wide range of industrial processes and services, notably high degree of precision and flexibility in process temperatures as well as strong flame in applications like heat treatment furnaces, direct firing of ceramic Kilns, glass working, textile and paper processing, plant drying and metal works.
In conclusion, affordability of LP gas and public awareness about its advantages over the traditional fuels will enable households to progress up the energy ladder, towards more environmentally friendly energies, thereby creating a modern energy consumption market.
LPG Safety Tips
-Use a Child- safe regulator on the LPG cylinder for domestic use
-Turn the regulator off position after use.
-LP gas is odorized to allow you smell any leak. Check for leaking hoses and valves on regular basis using soapy water. Never use a lit match for checking leaks.
Shut off regulators and stoves after use
-Replace the hose at least after two years and regulator after five years
-Always keep the cylinder upright
-The hose should not come in contact with the flames.
The writer is the Programme Officer of Energy Institute of Uganda
The public has something to smile about in the recent national budget read by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ezra Suruma. However, one important aspect seesm to have gone almost unnoticed. This has to do with the VAT tax waive on Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as gas.
With the current power shortages that have hit the country, LP gas could partly answer our energy problems especially for heating, cooking and lighting requirements in our homes as the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development struggles to fix the problem. Now that VAT has been waived off, LP gas has been made a bit more affordable.
There is however a wrong perception by the public about the gas as being very dangerous and explosive yet if handled well it’s one of the most environmentally friendly forms of energy compared to traditional fuels like charcoal and firewood.
LP gas burns cleanly without smoke or residual particular matter and with relatively low pollution emissions. These inherently “clean†characteristics are especially important for reducing indoor air pollution associated with the traditional fuels.
At the household and workplace level, the use of traditional fuels for cooking and heating can produce large amounts of air-borne pollutants, which cause serious health problems.
In-door air pollution alone is thought to account for 4-5% of global diseases, with women and children suffering most. So switching to LP gas is better alternative since it has negligible emissions of toxic gases that can cause health problems.
Worldwide, more that 200 million metric tones of LP gas are produced each year and supplies are projected to increase 4-5% annually because of realisation of its economic energy potential and its environment benefits.
In a typical low income household a compact LP gas system can offer access to modern alternative sources of cooking, water heating and lighting which are the typical uses of energy in our homes, thereby providing many homes with an opportunity to replace traditional cooking fuels which are a threat to our health and environment. On a commercial scale, LP gas can be applied in food refrigeration, cooking and water heating for restaurants, hotel and institutions. Many hotels have actually embraced LP gas to cut on their energy bills.
On industrial scale, it provides a wide range of industrial processes and services, notably high degree of precision and flexibility in process temperatures as well as strong flame in applications like heat treatment furnaces, direct firing of ceramic Kilns, glass working, textile and paper processing, plant drying and metal works.
In conclusion, affordability of LP gas and public awareness about its advantages over the traditional fuels will enable households to progress up the energy ladder, towards more environmentally friendly energies, thereby creating a modern energy consumption market.
LPG Safety Tips
-Use a Child- safe regulator on the LPG cylinder for domestic use
-Turn the regulator off position after use.
-LP gas is odorized to allow you smell any leak. Check for leaking hoses and valves on regular basis using soapy water. Never use a lit match for checking leaks.
Shut off regulators and stoves after use
-Replace the hose at least after two years and regulator after five years
-Always keep the cylinder upright
-The hose should not come in contact with the flames.
The writer is the Programme Officer of Energy Institute of Uganda