CookClean’s activities directly contribute to ecosystem integrity that contribute to human well-being.

CookClean’s activities protect natural habitats and flora and fauna which are rapidly being lost to deforestation. Natural resources, particularly woodland, are conserved as the need for wood is reduced considerably or avoided completely. Furthermore, the activities address loss of environmental resources which includes the destabilization of water storage and run-off characteristics caused by deforestation; this destabilization reduces water availability and thus quantity.

In Ghana biomass is the most dominant source of energy and is used significantly in the domestic sector for cooking. Wood fuels, in the form of forest wood, charcoal and wood processing residues are the most dominant biomass forms of energy in use in Ghana.

Furthermore, cooking on open fire and uncontrolled fire results in 13,400 deaths in Ghana annually due to exposure to harmful emission and 21 million impacted by exposure to Household Air Pollution (HAP) each year.(source: Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves)

Cook Stove Solution

The prevailing traditional cook stoves i Ghana are inefficient and wasteful in their use of biomass fuels resulting in unsustainable use of biomass. The use of improved cook stoves from CookClean with up to 50% less fuel use as compared to the traditional stove contribute to reducing the unsustainable use of the country’s renewable biomass.

CookClean “CookMate” stove
The CookMate Stove is a locally researched and developed, taking cognizance of local cooking habits and leaning towards rocket stove technology. The cylindrical metal charcoal stove has the following unique features:

• Strong but light-weight metal construction, making the CookMate robust yet very portable
• Conical combustion chamber avoids fuel overloading and concentrates heat below the pot
• Pot skirt guides heat flow and blocks wind, further increasing efficiency
• Air regulation system, allowing for variable cooking speeds and reduced fuel use
• Ash chamber avoids spreading of ash during cooking, a major benefit according to user feedback
• Comes with 1-year warranty
• Saves an estimated US$112 a year in fuel costs for each family
• Increased safety during use and reduction of toxic fumes for users, mostly women
• Highly attractive design, making it a desirable consumer and “life-style” product

Biomass Fuel Solution

Briquettes & Charcoal
As the problem of uncontrolled use of firewood could not be solved alone with improved cook stoves, the thought of making use of the huge saw dusts and agricultural residues became the driver for the search of producing briquettes and charcoal using these waste products as feed stock, hence the establishment of Briquettes and Charcoal production facilities using state of the art machines to complement the stove production.

In contrast, sawdust and shavings generated as a by-product in considerable amounts are usually considered a waste material and pose a disposal problem and can constitute fire hazards. They often have a negative value as resources are employed to burn the material on site or transport for disposal elsewhere. The common method of disposal by burning causes a great deal of pollution and is a menace to the general public.

CookClean does provide solution by converting saw dust into biomass fuels; whereby the  uncarbonised BidiePa briquettes are used as firewood and carbonised BidiePa briquettes as charcoal.

The following attributes speak for BidiePa Biomass Briquettes:

• Briquettes are a good substitute for wood
• They burn with a small flame and with less smoke
• They are clean and easy to handle
• Do not require chopping
• Cook with an even heat and are longer lasting
• More suitable for slow cooking