Windhoek — The Combating Bush Encroachment for Namibia's Development is a concept project intended to install one 0.25 megawatts bush-to-electricity power-generating plant in a densely bush encroached area in rural Namibia.

A strategic environmental assessment done by the Southern African Institute for Environmental Assessment (SAIEA) suggests it is feasible.

It is estimated that Namibia can produce about 60 megawatts from small decentralised bush-to-electricity power plants.

This means that 120 to 300 power plants could be established on both communal and commercial farms, with each of these power plants ranging between 200 and 500 kilowatts.

If this can be attained, suggested the Southern African Institute for Environmental Assessment (SAIEA), the Combating Bush Encroachment for Namibia's Development (CBEND) project can address three things simultaneously.

The first is to deal with the prevailing bush encroachment. It can address joblessness. Importantly, too, is that this can serve as a supplement to Namibia's power needs with an indigenous, sustainable and renewable fuel source.

The CBEND project maintains that the woody biomass represents an economic opportunity for the country. It focuses on the conversion of invader bush to electricity by using wood-gasification technology that is said to be ideally suited for small to medium scale electricity production - meaning production of less than five megawatts.

This process needs a large amount of wood to be harvested daily, which means it requires a large amount of labour, creating opportunities to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), especially in rural areas.

The primary function of CBEND, said SAIEA, is to demonstrate the viability for environmentally sound bush reduction and economically viable electricity generation using the wood gasification technology.

In all likelihood, said SAIEA, emerging commercial farmers are to benefit from this project, while harvesting and production can ideally take place on resettlement farms.

This, of course, will depend on the bush density of the areas, whether there is access to the national power grid, and whether farmers will be willing to take part in the project.

SAIEA said wood harvesting teams would have to be established that would provide direct employment to those on resettlement farms as well as those in the vicinity.

Wood harvesting permits would have to be obtained to ensure compliance with forestry regulations.

Furthermore, a power-purchasing agreement must be entered into with the Electricity Control Board (ECB) and the regional electricity distributor.

The CBEND project, implemented by the Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN) and sponsored by the European Union (EU), through a grant to the National Planning Commission (NPC), will establish an operational framework for bush harvesting and electricity generation.

If the concept is economically viable, it is anticipated that other farmers will also take part in it.

The spin-offs here, said SAIEA, are that there will be an enhanced efficiency in bush harvesting; that there will be increased livestock production in the agricultural sector; that there will be development of SMEs harvesting bush; and there will be the establishment of small independent power producers (IPPs).

A typical CBEND project is anticipated to employ around 25 to 30 people.

It is reported that on average about 3629 to 4865 tonnes of encroaching bush per year is available per farm in the Grootfontein, Okahandja, and Otjiwarongo areas.

Bush encroachment is defined as the invasion or thickening of "aggressive undesired wood species" that result in an "imbalance of the grass - bush ratio, a decrease in biodiversity, and a decrease in carrying capacity and concomitant economic losses".

It is estimated that about 26 million hectares are affected by encroacher bush. This translates into 2000 and 10000 bushes per hectare.

The DRFN estimated that about 10000 bushes per hectare could be harvested from about 10 million hectares. This means a crop production of 100 million tonnes.

SAIEA said not many studies have been done to ascertain how the harvesting of encroacher bush would impact on animal life.

This is important to map out since, as SAIEA pointed out, all plants, including encroacher species, which are indigenous plants and not alien species, add to the complex ecological relationships and interdependencies of plant and animal.

But a study done for a bush harvesting proposal for the cement plant near Otavi - an area considered to fall within the most densely encroached part of the country - listed 278 bird species, although the number of species are considerably less in encroached areas.

The study pointed out that of the 30 species likely to be found in thorn bush thickets, only six species are reliant on them.

SAIEA said these six species are commonly found across Namibia, and clearing of encroachers would thus not significantly affect their numbers in the country.

Two groups of mammals were identified as most likely affected by cleared bush. These are browsers - like kudu, duiker, dik-dik, giraffe, black rhino and elephant - and cavity users - birds using the cavity of trees as nests, and so on.

It is said that these might decrease in the cleared areas. On the other hand, said SAIEA, mammal species likely to benefit in cleared areas, are the grassland species, such as the blue wildebeest, oryx, red hartebeest, warthog and zebra that might increase in those areas.

SAIEA recommended that where areas are cleared of bush, some clumps of bush should be retained to provide shelter, and places for the affected animals to browse and nest.

It suggested that some patches of one to four hectares of bush should be left unharvested, while other plant species should be left intact.

The northern communal areas support an estimated 1.025 million people, or 56 percent of the Namibian population.

The bush encroached areas on freehold land have about 0.715 million people, or 39 percent of the population, of which a high percentage are in urban areas.

SAIEA said bush encroachment is a major problem on commercial land, and in particular in the savannah area. It is estimated that 50 percent of commercial farms were bush-encroached in the 1990s. This has resulted in degradation of the land because it caused a decline in cattle-carrying capacity from 20 to 90 percent.

Moreover, SAIEA said that most northern communal areas are far from the national power grid and are thus not suitable for CBEND power plants, which must be less than 500 meters away from a suitable power line where feeding into the national grid can take place.

This, it said, will limit the number of CBEND plants that can be operated for grid in-feeding in communal areas.

Ideally, it suggested, CBEND plants should be placed on farms that provide easy access to main roads and other facilities.

It said since many rural communal lands are far removed from such infrastructure, it may be a constraint to a number of farms that can accommodate CBEND workers.

By contrast, it said, resettlement farms show more potential, where some, like those in the Otjozondjupa Region, have diminished land use options as a result of bush encroachment.

Because resettled farmers find it difficult to establish infrastructure for commercial farming, SAIEA said the impression therefore is that these farms are obvious targets to set up CBEND plants.

However, doubt was expressed if resettled farmers would be interested to get on board, because it involves intense manual bush clearing.

At a stakeholders meeting late last month, farmers expressed concern over potentially adverse effects of bush encroachment on livestock farming, and particularly cattle farming.

But to do de-bushing requires funds. Some farmers felt they can do without having to clear their lands because they still generate adequate incomes that can be supplemented by wildlife and tourism.

SAIEA suggested that reluctant farmers might be encouraged to get on board with some kind of subsidisation.

This, they suggested, could come in the form of a guarantee to purchase wood that is chipped and pelleted for export, or assistance with high capital outlay for setting up a wood-pellet export business.

Some farmers felt that Government could assist the facilitation of wood businesses; it should not control the industry.

Some felt that an in-feeding subsidy would be the cleanest and most efficient form of financial assistance, which would reduce cash interactions and makes for easy auditing.

Countries like Germany or the United Kingdom subsidise grid in-feeding to encourage decentralised renewable energy generation.

Two sentiments emerged from the stakeholders' meeting.

The first one is that de-bushing might restore the open savannah, with the retention of a few scattered trees for the sake of ecological integrity.

Good rangeland management is of importance for the first option, and the generation of power is of lesser concern. Concern has also been expressed about the loss of moisture in the soil in bush encroached areas.

Some also felt that excessive bush clearing could reduce soil fertility, especially in sandy or silt-like areas.

There was a feeling that this was not sufficiently considered by charcoal farmers.

The second sentiment is that encroached bush can be harvested selectively so that bush industries - like charcoal, firewood and CBEND plants - can be sustained.

It, however, emphasises the need for selective harvesting to sustain incomes both from cattle farming and power generation.

Notwithstanding, most farmers thought the CBEND project is a good notion, agreeing that there is sufficient bush to keep CBEND plants running.

But it was felt that CBEND plants might go into direct competition with charcoal producers. However, pointed out SAIEA, less production could mean increased prices, and hence may not necessarily impact on the charcoal industry.

There was general agreement amongst stakeholders that rural residents are reluctant to do bush cutting.

The positive spin-off of a CBEND plant is that an estimated 4000 to 4800 semi- or unskilled people can find employment if 160 plants can be established. Such workers, said SAIEA, should be employed formally and be advised to live with their families to mitigate social problems of a migrant labour situation.

It further suggested that CBEND managers should offer a "hectare-thinned" price to CBEND workers, instead of a per tonnage price, which will encourage appropriate thinning.

Economically, de-bushing can mean more cattle-carrying capacity, which means more income for beef producers, with a supplemented income from a CBEND plant.

The positive impact on Namibia's energy supply means that the country can move closer to NamPower's plans to supplement its current demand with 10 percent from renewable sources.

The downside to this is that it may cause greater instability to the national power grid due to power factor considerations of the power lines that are fed into, the sensitivity of the interconnections, and the possibility that the generations may not always be embedded.