Rural Clean Cooking, China

Many rural households in China rely on burning coal to cook while unused animal waste from their farms leads to harmful methane (CH4) emissions. Biodigesters are a solution that address both challenges by turning animal waste from pigs or cows into a sustainable source of clean burning biogas for cooking.

This project brings a clean cooking solution to rural homes in China through the construction of biodigesters. In total, 18,000+ backyard biodigesters have been built and in the process, new skills and were shared with the communities on the building and maintaining of biodigesters.

This solution avoids methane emissions from animal waste and reduces the need for coal to cook each meal in 18,000+ households across rural areas of Guizhou Province in Southern China and beyond. Families benefit from decreased monthly fuel costs and no longer have coal smoke in the home from cooking as the biogas stoves burn cleanly.

The project reduces methane emissions to help take urgent action to combat climate change (SDG 13). In addition, the project delivers a number of other sustainable development benefits. These include:

• Good Health and Well-being: Indoor air pollution is reduced by using biogas as an alternative to other conventional wood biomass forms of energy. The biogas systems also reduce unpleasant odours by containing the waste in closed chambers, attracting fewer flies and helping decrease incidence of associated diseases.
• Responsible Consumption and Production: Methane biodigesters contribute significantly to responsible consumption and production by efficiently processing organic waste, including food scraps, manure, and agricultural byproducts. This process reduces landfill waste and improper disposal. Through anaerobic digestion, biodigesters produce two valuable outputs: biogas, a renewable energy source for cooking, heating, lighting, and power generation; and digestate, a nutrient-rich organic fertilizer that decreases reliance on chemical alternatives. By transforming waste into useful products, biodigesters exemplify circular economy principles, optimizing resource efficiency and minimizing waste.