Improved Cookstoves
Last updated
Last updated
Currently, there are over 3 billion people reliant on cookstoves for cooking and water heating purposes. These stoves are often run on inefficient, readily available fuels (sticks, crop waste, dung etc.) which, alongside emitting huge amounts of greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere, also have huge economic and health consequences for those using the stoves. Beyond this, it typically takes 18-24 months for stove credits to be issued, resulting in many improved stove projects being financially unviable due to the long lead times.
Due to the high up-front costs of advanced cookstoves (~$50), in many developing countries this cost is far too high to reach any meaningful adoption. The current model used to maximise positive impact is that stoves can be acquired by users for a smaller up-front cost and then the rest of the expense is subsidised by fuel purchases and sale of carbon credits. This same model could be made even more efficient with the application of blockchain-native carbon.
The proposed improvements have the potential to benefit every stakeholder in the process:
To improve accuracy and trust in cookstove tonnage, we are aiming to not only follow the methodology regarding fuel purchase data but expand and improve upon it by also combining stove usage data and fuel purchase data to get a clearer picture of carbon mitigated.
For stove users, having improved cookstoves reduces the health risks attached to cooking inefficient fuels indoors. As mentioned, the time between project start to credit issuance can take years, with the issuance of blockchain-native carbon that waiting time could be cut to less than a month. Along with that, the perceived trust of blockchain-native carbon has the potential to command a higher prices and resulting in quicker and higher payouts to stove users.
Finally, by cutting out middlemen and improving trust in cookstove credits, improving the speed and efficiency of these projects and providing support and access to interested project developers we could see a far greater number of these projects being accepted and implemented.
