Large areas in Namibia suffer from severe bush encroachment. This greatly reduces the natural grasslands needed by the cheetahs. The CCF is harvesting this thickened bush and beginning to produce “bush logs” as a source of fuel for local peoples. This project will help restore cheetah habitat, create local employment and produce and ecologically sustainable product.
A large amount of firewood is sold on the informal market in Namibia and most of Namibia’s firewood is being over-exploited leading to deforestation and desertification. The project’s bush logs will be produced by environmentally and socially appropriate means and will assist in the removal of excess undesirable bush from Namibian farmlands. As a result, habitat restoration efforts could be significantly increase to restore cheetah habitat.
The Bush Project will produce wood chips and fuel logs from its own plant for direct sale to local communities and also abroad. Rural households use a large amount of wood for cooking and heating. These logs, a clean burning fuel, can be used by local communities either a raw chips for high efficiency chip burning stoves or logs for earth stoves or open cooking fires.
The chipping and harvesting operation will employ 10-14 people for clearing and chipping with additional employment at the sub suppliers. The pilot plant operation is expected to employ 8-10 additional local people. Transportation of both the chipped bush and the end products provide additional opportunities for
employment.
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