Revisiting the Need of Improved Stoves: Estimating Health, Time and Carbon Benefits

Based on a survey of 400 households in Rasuwa district (Nepal) this study finds that stove improvements and a smoke hood can reduce the consumption of fuel, improve air quality and reduce the health costs burden of households. Such local interventions can also contribute to mitigating global green house gases through biomass burning. Findings show that the average indoor air pollution level in traditional stove user households is 15 times higher than the recommended safe level, which inevitably leads to higher health expenditures

Why tackling indoor air pollution makes sense : a study from Nepal

This policy brief is based on SANDEE working paper no. 44-09 "Re-visiting the need of improved stoves : estimating health, time and carbon benefits"Indoor air pollution (IAP) is a major environmental health problem in Nepal. Most of the poor in the country cook in poorly ventilated kitchens using inefficient stoves that burn wood and other biomass fuels creating a dangerous cocktail of hundreds of pollutants. They, therefore, suffer from numerous respiratory health problems. In a recent study, Min Bikram Malla Thakuri looked at the costs and benefits of a particular indoor air pollution control initiative and found that it offers a viable and cost-effective way of dealing with IAP