The islands of Lubya, Namiti, and Kirewe in the Buvuma district of Lake Victoria are home to 8,300 people. Many of these families use charcoal for cooking, with only a few still using firewood. The islands, which were once naturally forested, now have no trees; all cooking fuel is transported in from the mainland by boat. Prices are increasing due to shortages of fuel on the mainland.
In addition to the people's lack of sustainable sources of fuel, these communities also lack access to proper sanitation facilities in particular toilets. They utilize the nearby bushes and even open places to dispose off their human waste or any organic waste such as that from kitchen. The decomposition of these organic wastes produces methane a very dangerous greenhouse gas to be emitted to the atmosphere. Methane is known to be 21 times more dangerous as compared to carbondioxide. Our setting up of biolatrines to convert the organic waste into clean cooking fuel will cab the emission of GHGs from open deposition of these wastes in addition to providing an alternative source of fuel for the community hence avoiding the problem of deforestation. This will help solve the problem of climate change in the long run.
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