Adoption and impact of improved cookstoves in Lambayeque, Peru, 2017

Abstract

Introduction: Approximately three billion people in Asia, Africa, and the Americas cook with biomass, cleaner cooking technologies with the potential to reduce household air pollution exposure. It is necessary to assess the adoption and long-term use of these stoves, measure perceived benefits among users, and use this information to provide feedback to programs that are implementing new cooking technologies. The aim of this study is to determine the level of adoption and impact of improved biomass cookstoves in the rural area of Lambayeque, Peru, in 2017. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. A total of 52 homes were surveyed in the districts of Pacora and Íllimo where improved biomass stoves were introduced between 2005 and 2013. A questionnaire for the assessment of adoption and impact indexes proposed by the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves was applied. The STROBE checklist was used. Results: The mean number of years with the improved biomass cookstove was 9.1 (standard deviation: 2.9); 51.9% always used the improved stove, and 34.6% never used it due to destruction during the El Niño phenomenon in 2017. The median impact index was 5.62; 19.2% had a very good/good adoption. The median adoption index was 6.5; 25% had a very high/high impact. The use of the traditional or open fire biomass stove persisted in 61.5% of the houses. Conclusion: The adoption and impact of improved biomass cookstoves were acceptable, but traditional stove use persisted in more than half of the houses. Households used a mix of different stove technologies. Gas stoves were used more frequently for breakfast or dinner, while the traditional biomass stoves were used for larger lunchtime meals.

Climate Change and Health of Children: Our Borrowed Future

“…According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than five million children in the United States are afflicted with asthma, a leading cause of chronic illness in children (Pate et al, 2021) that disproportionately impacts Black and Hispanic children and those living in poverty. In many areas of the world, biomass fuels are used for heat and cooking in homes, putting children at risk of adverse respiratory impacts from smoke inhalation (Díaz-V asquez et al, 2020).…”

Understanding the Access to Fuels and Technologies for Cooking in Peru

“…In addition, improved cookstoves (ICS) are used, for which there are 68 certified models, with "Inkawasi" models and their variants being the most widespread ones in the mountains and the jungle regions of the country [20,66]. The most widespread ICS in the country are a type of clay and/or brick stove with a fireplace, more efficient than traditional open-fire stoves, and offering advantages in reducing exposure to smoke from the combustion of solid fuels [69][70][71]. However, there are unresolved technical and social aspects, such as problems in obtaining materials for its construction, incompatibility between the proposed model and cooking practices (differences between the size of the containers and the ICS), the perception of the appropriate flavors according to their custom, fuel resources that are not compatible with the cooking stove (wood, dung cake, and adequate size for its use), as well as problems derived from constructive faults [37,64,[70][71][72][73][74][75].…”

“…The most widespread ICS in the country are a type of clay and/or brick stove with a fireplace, more efficient than traditional open-fire stoves, and offering advantages in reducing exposure to smoke from the combustion of solid fuels [69][70][71]. However, there are unresolved technical and social aspects, such as problems in obtaining materials for its construction, incompatibility between the proposed model and cooking practices (differences between the size of the containers and the ICS), the perception of the appropriate flavors according to their custom, fuel resources that are not compatible with the cooking stove (wood, dung cake, and adequate size for its use), as well as problems derived from constructive faults [37,64,[70][71][72][73][74][75]. This is a situation that should be considered by the national social programs responsible for the implementation of ICS, and for which no evidence of reporting or evaluation of current ICS has been found.…”

“…This exemplifies the situation of most ICS projects and LPG programs in rural areas, in that the target population becomes a user of the proposed technology but does not fully adopt it and rather accumulates it along with other technological options. Previous studies suggest that this is because the recently adopted technology does not fully meet the needs of the population, and that economic and cultural reasons are combined [33][34][35]71]. Such a situation could be overcome by incorporating the socio-cultural dimension to the project and by adapting technologies to local fuel preferences [33,36,37,71,77,78]…”

Nursing’s pivotal role in global climate action

“…The wisdom of nurses in low and middle income countries needs to be incorporated into the global climate discourse; their work ranges from subjects as diverse as the response to megafires in the Amazon to the promotion of low emission cooking stoves that safeguard respiratory health 2324. The United Nations sustainable development agenda (inclusive of 17 sustainable development goals) exemplifies a more inclusive approach to change 13.…”