192
C. Nabukalu and R. Giere
recommended practices, such as felling trees by observing a minimum
harvestable diameter (Namaalwa, Hofstad, & Sankhayan, 2009), indiscriminate tree cutting is common. The destruction of young vegetation
when high-powered motor vehicles access remote production sites for
charcoal pickup also leaves fewer trees to naturally sequester carbon.
Moreover, pyrolysis, the chemical process of transforming tree trunks
into charcoal under low-oxygen conditions, releases large amounts of
various gases and pollutants, which are highly concentrated around the
earth-mound kilns (Nabukalu & Gieré, 2019).
Upstream, one of the most significant occupational hazards of charcoal
production using earth-mound kilns is that the highly manual processes
create risks of back straining, wounding and bruising not only from the
tools used but also from the massive logs or raw materials that have to be
lifted or rolled on the uneven ground and then piled to set up the kiln.
For example, we observed that a single kiln is typically set up by only one
or two workers, to their shoulder height, to make monitoring pyrolysis
manageable. Moreover, workers do not wear protective equipment such
as gloves, overalls, masks or fire-proof footwear while producing charcoal.
Pyrolysis in earth-mound kilns generally registers very low-efficiency
rates, between 8 and 11% (Namaalwa, Hofstad, & Sankhayan, 2009;
Alfaro and Jones; 2018), depending on a burner’s skills (Chidumayo
& Gumbo, 2013). Some logs are not fully transformed into charcoal,
but still, release poisonous gases. Because nomadic producers set up their
tents in very close proximity to monitor the kilns, they face high risks of
inhaling toxic gases (e.g. methane, carbon monoxide), which may harm
their health.
At the remote production sites in the Nwoya and Mityana districts
(Fig. 6.1), we observed that nomadic workers did not have access to clean
piped water for the 4–6-month duration of their work. Moreover, there
was high dependence on medicinal herbs, although this largely depends
on pre-existing knowledge of plant species. Alternatively, workers carried
over-the-counter drugs for relief of symptoms, such as headaches, during
work, with risks of spoilage from poor storage conditions.
Because of handling practices, the risks of inhaling charcoal dust
occur for most stakeholders along the supply chain. In their study of
Namibia’s charcoal factories, Hamatui, Naidoo, and Kgabi (2016) found
that workers involved in packaging, sieving and weighing processes were
C. Nabukalu and R. Giere
recommended practices, such as felling trees by observing a minimum
harvestable diameter (Namaalwa, Hofstad, & Sankhayan, 2009), indiscriminate tree cutting is common. The destruction of young vegetation
when high-powered motor vehicles access remote production sites for
charcoal pickup also leaves fewer trees to naturally sequester carbon.
Moreover, pyrolysis, the chemical process of transforming tree trunks
into charcoal under low-oxygen conditions, releases large amounts of
various gases and pollutants, which are highly concentrated around the
earth-mound kilns (Nabukalu & Gieré, 2019).
Upstream, one of the most significant occupational hazards of charcoal
production using earth-mound kilns is that the highly manual processes
create risks of back straining, wounding and bruising not only from the
tools used but also from the massive logs or raw materials that have to be
lifted or rolled on the uneven ground and then piled to set up the kiln.
For example, we observed that a single kiln is typically set up by only one
or two workers, to their shoulder height, to make monitoring pyrolysis
manageable. Moreover, workers do not wear protective equipment such
as gloves, overalls, masks or fire-proof footwear while producing charcoal.
Pyrolysis in earth-mound kilns generally registers very low-efficiency
rates, between 8 and 11% (Namaalwa, Hofstad, & Sankhayan, 2009;
Alfaro and Jones; 2018), depending on a burner’s skills (Chidumayo
& Gumbo, 2013). Some logs are not fully transformed into charcoal,
but still, release poisonous gases. Because nomadic producers set up their
tents in very close proximity to monitor the kilns, they face high risks of
inhaling toxic gases (e.g. methane, carbon monoxide), which may harm
their health.
At the remote production sites in the Nwoya and Mityana districts
(Fig. 6.1), we observed that nomadic workers did not have access to clean
piped water for the 4–6-month duration of their work. Moreover, there
was high dependence on medicinal herbs, although this largely depends
on pre-existing knowledge of plant species. Alternatively, workers carried
over-the-counter drugs for relief of symptoms, such as headaches, during
work, with risks of spoilage from poor storage conditions.
Because of handling practices, the risks of inhaling charcoal dust
occur for most stakeholders along the supply chain. In their study of
Namibia’s charcoal factories, Hamatui, Naidoo, and Kgabi (2016) found
that workers involved in packaging, sieving and weighing processes were