Extinction

to cover energy needs, most households in developing countries resort to freely gathered biomass fuels (World Energy Council & FAO, 1999): "More than half the world's population lives in rural areas … The vast majority of these people is dependent on the traditional fuels of wood, dung and crop residue" - predominantly, fuel wood. When the annual use of wood exceeds the sustainable yield of wooded areas, forests and woodlands are gradually destroyed. In some dry areas such as the West African Sahel, fuel wood collection is by far the dominant factor of deforestation. The problem is particularly severe in Africa, where fuel wood and charcoal consumption have increased significantly during the last two decades and is projected to keep growing. In 1994, 84 percent of the round wood produced in the region was used as fuel wood.(kim kieu)