Sylvie Ouellet, Program Manager for GTZ in Kahuzi Biega National Park, and Boji D., Chef de Station Nzovu for ICCN (Institute Congolaise pour la Conservation) visited our press machine group in the General Hospital.

They will be training with us during the next two weeks, on how pressing fuel briquettes. They have ordered one press machine that will be installed in Chivanga (village in the limits of Kahuzi Biega National Park) where this project is to be started.

Sylvie and Boji are already working on a separate project to improve the heating capacity of the local stoves. They brought with them their version of the improved mbabula, made out of clay, that can retain more that 50% of the heat when burning fuel wood or charcoal. They have made an initial order of 60 units and they will be donating those in the villages next to the park.

Unfortunately their improved stove did not work with our fuel briquettes.

Charles, 38 (a local, son of a geologist who works in the volcano Nyiragongo) was one of the guys who I really enjoyed working with while training in Rumangabo, had loads of energy and showed huge commitment to this project. He told us he had been testing the fuel briquettes with his stove (local mbabula), the same one he uses with charcoal.

So we told Charles to bring over his mbabula and lighted up 3 fuel briquettes. He used a tiny bit of charcoal to start them up, by placing it inside the briquette’s hole. They rapidly gave the flame and heat, but also a lot of smoke. So we then moved the same briquettes to our improved stove version (a metal bucket) and showed them how controlled air can stop the smoke and concentrate the heat better.

During our last day of training in Rumangabo, we shared the experiences learnt with the workers, and many locals passing by, who gave us their opinions on the fuel briquette technology. Ephrem, from WildlifeDirect, joined us to lead the discussion in Swahili.

Below some notes on our meeting:

How did you find the work? Do you think you can do this on a permanent basis?

We would choose to do so if given the opportunity. Here in Rumangabo we can only choose out of three jobs: carrying sand, producing chalk or burning bricks for construction. All three are heavy jobs, and pressing briquettes is much easier and pleasant.

Will this job help you improve your livelihood?

If I had the machine for myself, I am sure that after one month of work I will be able to buy a bicycle for my wife. I will be also saving money by using what I produce to cook, for I spend quite a lot on charcoal and fuel wood. During our training these last days, local people approached us to buy the briquettes. I think we could also sell them to the wives of the military, who will then take it to the outskirts of Goma for sale.

What are the challenges you find to produce fuel briquettes?

During the dry season we will have to walk 1,5 km to get water from the river; and then during the rainy season, humidity will make it harder to dry the leaves and fuel briquettes.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of using fuel briquettes against charcoal?

We come very tired from work, so we would choose the briquettes because they burn much faster that charcoal. You can have the meal ready fifteen minutes after lighting them up. On the other hand, we are a bit sceptical about heavier meals like beans…..charcoal burns for longer time (editor’s note: during the training, each worker was given 6 fuel briquettes a day to cook their meals. Some of them tried to cook beans, but to prepare them you need 10 briquettes, and they didn’t have enough to finish the cooking. One of the participants borrowed an extra briquette from a colleague, and said he almost had the beans ready, but still needed some more. Our experience in Bukavu confirms that you need 10 fuel briquettes to cook 1,5kg of beans).

On our last day of fuel briquette training in Rumangabo, we dedicated half of the session on learning how to make compost. Every group crushed dry leaves (with the mortar and pilon) and prepared one basin of compost each.

Unfortunately we could not test the material to see its ‘cooking’ point when ready for pressing, but we left everything prepared inside the plastic bags and the groups will be checking on its progress during our absence.

During our second day of training in Rumangabo, we organised a competition. We divided the workers in teams of four, and the one that pressed the most fuel briquettes during one hour, would win a present.

One of the difficulties we found in Rumangabo is the lack of water during the dry season. People walk 1,5km to the closest river to get it. So during our competition, we run out of water, and we timed the groups for 50 minutes only.

The wining team pressed 165 fuel briquettes, the second group did 130 and the third one pressed 117. In less than one hour we had 412 fuel briquettes with three press machines….and taking into account that you only need 3 briquettes to cook a standard meal, it is therefore very encouraging to realise that we will be able to reach the 150 families that live in Rumangabo, if this project is to be started with a serious production scheme in mind.

Let’s do the maths: a group of workers with one press machine can produce 1.000 fuel briquettes per day (8 hours work). So with three machines we will be having 3.000 fuel briquettes a day. An average family would consume 15 fuel briquettes a day, which means that with our daily production we will be able to reach 200 families.

Greetings from Rumangabo! Yesterday was our first day with the group of 12 local men, chosen by ICCN Balemba, who will be trained on the fuel briquette technology.

We had a big crowd all day following with interest our first demonstration. Rumangabo is the main station in the southern sector of Virunga National park. Right in front of us stands proudly mount Mikeno, home of the mountain gorillas, now taken by rebels and General Nkunda.

One hundred and fifty families live permanently in Rumangabo, but there is a big IDP camp just around the corner from the station.

My first impression was very possitive, but still need to do serious training on composting, for we will not have a smooth life like in Bukavu, where paper and sawdust are easily available.

This Tuesday 8th of July, I will be travelling to Goma, for a week only, to help install the 3 presses and fuel briquette program in Rumangabo (southern sector of Virunga National Park). Yet to decide which groups will be chosen to work on the presses.

On the meantime, last week I have been training Francky, a possible candidate to cover the position offered by WildlifeDirect, to carry out this Energy Program. You can read more about their project here. Francky will be travelling together with me to Rumangabo. And if you are interested on this position or want a full job description, you can send your CV or contact Robert Williams on: robaretoe@hotmail.com

Francky on the left, explaining the advantages of using fuel briquettes, to the women in the malnutrition center.

Last Thursday all the staff working with the press in the General Hospital, gathered together to exchange ideas and fix the price for the fuel briquettes. We will be selling 3 units for 50 Congolese francs. Remember with 3 fuel briquettes you can cook one meal.

As for the stoves, we will be selling them at u$s 3 each. We will get a quote to have them built on heavier material, to make them more resistant than the actual metal bucket we are adapting.

We will be requesting for an aditional metal plate to get three briquettes per PVC cylinder when pressing.

And we have decided that every press worker will be taking home 6 fuel briquettes each, at no cost.

Back in May 2007 I took a plane from London to DR Congo, to work together with WildlifeDirect. I was then based in Mutsora, the northern sector of Virunga National Park, until February 2008, when I decided to leave and work in Bukavu, South Kivu.

While working for WildlifeDirect, I was very lucky to meet (through the net) Robert Williams, a big gorilla fun, who later became fundraiser and consultant for that same NGO (you can read more on his blog Ending Charcoal). We kept in touch after I left, and he was the person who proposed and inspired me with this great idea of fuel briquettes.

My work has been voluntary from the start, and thanks to the generous donation of $580 I got from Sue and Samantha, I was able to build the first press machine and mechanical hammer mill.

Robert Williams has been on the other side of the world giving me advice on a daily basis, and as from last month, I have been paid a salary of $1000 for June (and same for July), to help WildlifeDirect set up their project in Rumangabo, while training staff here in Bukavu.

I would like to thank William and Kizito from SoDeRu, because I have been living under their expenses (house, car, bike, petrol, Internet connection, security), and without them, I would have never been able to make it.

I would also like to thank The Legacy Foundation and Richard Stanley, who invented this successfull product and give us all their support whenever we need it.

I am currently writting grant proposals to take this project on a bigger scale, while visiting local conservation NGO’s who would be willing to adopt the fuel briquette technique within their programs.

After a long weekend due to yesterday’s public holiday in DR Congo, we have had a busy day today with many things happening in the Hospital.

Solange Ngobobo, the person responsible for running IFRADE and the women in Kadutu, has came over to discuss the last details with sister Helena Albarracin on their press machine being moved to the hospital’s premises. The space here is much bigger to work comfortably and within easy access to many resources.

We are almost finished with the fixing of the hammer mill’s leg, the original one was very weak to support such heavy workload.

We found insects eating our stored fuel briquettes, so we need to find out the easiest and cheapest way to getting rid of those!

And finally, our container has become small, so we have luckily been given another 40 ft. container to store more material.