Ethno-Environmental Knowledge as A Tool to Combat Indoor Air Pollution in Low Income Countries: A Case Study from Rural Communities in Pakistan

School Biological Sciences , University Of Essex , United Kingdom ,Zaheer Nasir,Department Of Zoology , University Of The Punjab , Pakistan ,Luiza Campos,Ian Colbeck, ,Zulfiqar Ali,Zareen Bharucha

doi:10.15764/eh.2014.02018

School Biological Sciences , University Of Essex , United Kingdom , Zaheer Nasir + Show 6 more

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https://doi.org/10.15764/eh.2014.02018

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Abstract

It has recently been estimated that 4 million deaths each year are associated with air pollution originating from household solid fuel use. Interventions to reduce biomass fuel-related emis- sions can yield a diverse stream of benefits including improved public health, socio-economic development, reduced land degradation and climate change mitigation. This study investigates the use of indigenous knowledge to inform interventions to combat indoor air pollution at a rural site in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The results indicate that the majority of people using biomass fuel had knowledge of its ill health effects. A range of methods were utilised to reduce indoor smoke including included cooking in open spaces, use of chimneys, better ventilation and use of dry fuel. Education and housing type showed a statistically significant relationship with awareness of methods to reduce indoor exposure to biomass smoke. These findings lend support to the notion that communities have indigenous knowledge and their own methods to reduce exposure to indoor smoke from biomass fuels; this knowledge can be used as tool to design and implement sustainable intervention strategies to reduce the risk of exposure to indoor air pollution. It is recommended that a community based intervention focusing on locally manufactured improved stoves and better designed cooking spaces would be a suitable intervention in this region.

Highlights

Indoor air pollution from biomass fuel use, as a source of household energy, poses serious threats to human health and contributes to environmental degradation
Almost 3 billion people in the world rely on biomass fuel for cooking, heating and lighting
A large number of interventions are in place and some have shown a reduction in the health effects

Summary

Introduction

Indoor air pollution from biomass fuel use, as a source of household energy, poses serious threats to human health and contributes to environmental degradation. The resulting smoke contains a range of substances that can pose a serious threat to human health, especially for women and young children [3]. This smoke has been linked with acute infection of the lower respiratory tract, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and lung cancer (especially from coal use) [4]. It has recently been estimated that the air pollution produced from cooking with solid fuels kills 4 million people annually and within South Asia is the third highest risk factor for causes of death [5]. Apart from public health impacts biomass fuel emissions are implicated in other environmental concerns such as global warming [6]

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