Here's How This Zimbabwe Refugee Camp Turns Animal Poo to Bio-Gas

Zimbabwe and the U.N. Refugee Agency, UNHCR, are piloting an effort to avert deforestation and by benefiting from waste management at the country's biggest refugee camp. The Tongogara camp near Zimbabwe's eastern border with Mozambique has installed machines for refugees to turn animal waste into bio-gas, which can be used as fuel for cooking and for fertiliser. 

Fertiliser is a by-product from animal waste after it ferments in digesters. The biogas produced during the fermentation is also free to refugees. Some use it for cooking. The UNHCR's water, sanitation and hygiene unit in Zimbabwe, said it started the project after it saw that refugees were struggling to dispose of animal waste at the camp.

Proper utilisation of livestock manure into bio-gas, compost and vermicompost making can be very useful, to increase crop yield and sustainability. The work carried out in livestock waste management and value addition in some developed, and developing countries, have been reviewed  - India and China being the two leading Asian countries using bio-gas technology.

The use of animal manure in power generation reduces greenhouse gases as it reduces the amount of methane emitted from waste, and reducing carbon dioxide and other gases from fossil fuels that manure replaces in the production of electricity.