Rural energy and the quality of air : with special reference to a tribal area in Tamil Nadu

Not much attention has been paid to rural energy and its related environmental problems; and studies on air pollution due to burning of fuelwood for cooking purpose seem to be inadequate. The present study aims to measure the amount of fuelwood used by households and to estimate the amount of pollutants emitted from burning of firewood for cooking. For the present study, 85 households in a tribal panchayat called Sittillngi in Dharmapuri district of Tamil Nadu state, were surveyed. Results indicate that the sampled households burn 254 tonnes of fuelwood annually. Correlation analysis shows that annual income and firewood consumption of households are negatively correlated (r=-0.11) or the income and pollutants are negatively correlated . Some suggestions are given to minimize air pollution resulting from fuelwood burning. (author). 11 refs., 3 tabs