This is one of the demonstration projects included in a large program: Commercialization of Biogas Technology in China, which is co-funded by Shell International Initiative, WAJF and WWF.

The project started in November 1999.

The project site is located in Baima Snow Mt. Nature Reserve of Deqing, northwest of Yunnan Province. It has typical high mountain and gorge topography. Three big rivers, i.e. Nujiang River, Lantsang River and Yangtse River flow across this area shoulder by shoulder. Divine Snow Mountain, grand glacier, alpine pasture and lake, dense forest forms its charming landscape. It is known as Shangri-La. There is a population of more than 8,000 living in the Nature Reserve, most are Tibetan. They cultivate limited lands in the Nature Reserve. They plant highland barley, wheat or corn, most of the produce is used for feeding their livestock. Generally every household keeps several yaks, pigs and so on, but only for self-consumption not for sale. And the traditional feeding style not only consumes large amount of food, but also large amount of natural firewood. In cold winter, local farmers mix forage grass with hot water to feed livestock three times a day. For a households with 10 yaks and pigs each, it will cost nearly 5-6 ton natural firewood. If cooking and heating is counted, an average household will consume at least 10 tons of natural firewood. The main sources of income of average households come from the collection of wild fungus and herb or small business or young workers out of home. Because of lack of effective management, income from the collection of fungus and herb is not stable. Usually men go out of home to act as casual laborer to earn money for their families. Women stay at home to doing farm work and housework. Except for gathering wild fungus, their contribution to income of the households is very little. It happens occasionally that children loss their education when the households are in short of labor force. Most of the families in the nature reserve lead a traditional autarkic life.

So one of the most urgent problem is about energy. Consumption of natural firewood has put heavy pressure upon the nature reserve. It also causes painful conflict between the nature reserve conservancy and local inhabitants. Another problem is about the community development. Lack of advanced agricultural technology, difficult to get loan from financial institution for local farmer especially poor households; lack of market information; ban of deforestation and hunting also affect the local inhabitants;

Through this project, we have been introducing the well-developed 4-in-1 biogas technology and advanced agricultural technology (for example planting vegetable and fruit, raising livestock) to local inhabitants. Then biogas produced from the digester can be provided as an alternative energy for daily use, so it can reduce the consumption of natural firewood as well as the labor spent on firewood collecting. At the same time, planting vegetables or fruits can increase the income of local inhabitants. And biogas is much cleaner and less smoky than firewood. In order to make this project more sustainable and repeatable, we will try to establish a business model. We will persuade the financial institution to participate in this project, and support the nature reserve conservancy to establish a corporation. It will concentrate on providing technical service and market service to local communities.

The technology we have chosen to introduce to the Nature reserve is fully developed in Pulandian in northeast China. It integrates biogas digester, greenhouse, pigpen and toilet into one system from which it named as "4-in-1". It forms a fine ecological cycle between the animals and plants inside the system. Plants give out O2 and absorb CO2, while pigs breathe out CO2 and inhale O2. Since the biogas digester is in the greenhouse, it is able to produce biogas even in cold winter. Pigs raised in the greenhouse grow faster than usual, and residue from biogas digester can be used as fertilizer for plants, so fruits and vegetables can achieve higher yield and better quality.

IV. Financing

Using our fund as loan guarantee to attract the loan of local financial institution. And promise to pay interest to farmers who return the loan in time to encourage the farmers to return the money in time.

To attract the project fund on rural energy of local government and relevant functional department. Persuade them to provide subsidy in way of construction materials or else.

Establish demonstration to attract farmers' interest and then encourage them to cover part of the investment by themselves.

V. Technical Support

Development Center for Rural Energy of the Nature Reserve will be responsible for the technical support. And we also invited experts from Agricultural Science Institute of Zhongdian to act as technical adviser.

Only farmers who get the permission of the Center can borrow money from the special fund for rural energy. It then combines the technical service and loan together.

VI. Conclusion and Suggestion.

a. Energy supply should be diversified. Biogas, firewood forest, small hydropower,
commercial energy resource, solar energy, energy saving building (green building), solar house (it can keep warm in winter and then reduce the consumption of natural firewood in winter for warming the house) and so on.

b. Energy efficiency should be improved and integrated with the introduction of advanced agricultural technology. Spreading the energy-saving stove. For example, the traditional style of raising livestock is energy wasting. If advanced thremmatology (raising technology) can be introduced to local farmers, it will save large amount of natural firewood.

c. Community development should be integrated with Nature Conservation. Proved by facts, if local farmers can benefit from the nature conservation or the conservancy can do something good for the community development, farmers will be more self-conscious about the natural protection. And the conservancy do try their best to serve for the local community, they has done many public welfare establishments such as repair the water pipe, pay for the loss caused by wild animals, help villagers to construct country road and so on. Villagers will appreciate their effort and will then support their protection work. However, due to lack of advanced technology, capable person, experienced technicians, fund, what they can serve for the community is limited.

d. The exploitation of natural resources should be in a more effective and sustainable manner. As we know that one of the main income resource of local inhabitantscomes from the collection of natural resources, such as fungus, herb and so on. Currently, the collection is unorganized, spontaneous and blindfold, depend heavily on outside market. And it is difficult for farmers to get the exact market information, and the natural resources are sold directly to the market, no any processing on them.

e. More efforts should be made to strengthen the capability of local institutes and organizations to provide technical service and market information.

f. Local financial institution should strengthen their management and actively participate in and support the community development.

PROJECT REPORTS

Report on the investigation to Baima Snow Mt. Nature Reserve

Interim Assessment of Commercialization of Biogas Technology in Baima Snow Mt. Nature Reserve Conservancy, Yunnan

Final report for the Yunnan Demonstration
Project in the first year