[gentle music] [Scott Tinker] Nearly three billion people today still burn wood, straw, charcoal, or dung for cooking or heating.

The smoke from these fires fills their homes and their lungs, breathed in mostly by mothers and their children, and leading to disease and premature death across the developing world.

Many governments, international agencies, and local businesses are trying to address this problem.

Some have tried more efficient stoves for burning wood, but the smoke persists.

Most now agree that the solution is to change cooking fuels.

[fire crackling] [energetic music] There are nearly three billion people today who still live with little or no energy.

And what I want to know is how they'll finally get it.

So this is sort of what it was, and that's the future.

- That's the future.

[both chuckling] - I'm Scott Tinker and I study energy.

Come with me around the world to meet people and communities as they Switch On.

[energetic music] [gentle music] To get a first-hand understanding, I went to Nepal, to meet a team studying the transition away from wood and biomass fuels.

The challenges and solutions they're seeing here are the same in developing countries around the world.

The leader of this project is environmental health scientist, Dr. Amod Pokhrel.

- Namaste.

- So here what we're trying to do is create a smoke-free village.

Our definition of smoke-free village is that 80% of the time all the households use clean energy.

[Scott] Eight percent.

- That's our target.

- You say clean cook stove, what do you mean clean?

- So our definition of clean cook stove is gas and electricity and the biogas or LPG or electric cook stove.

- Because it doesn't have the smoke.

- Yeah, it doesn't emit smoke.

- And you're able to do this with just a few houses or do you have to- - It takes a village to sow this effect.

That's why I have this 773 households.

We're measuring the stove uses every day like every five minutes we're collecting data on that and air pollution level like four times throughout this study and blood pressure also four times so it's a longitudinal.

yeah so we want to show the longitudinal change.

[Scott] Power lines along main roads supply electricity from Nepal's dams to small businesses.

That's a heckuva band saw.

This workshop makes and sells furniture and sells its scrap wood too.

Sanukanchi, a mother of five from a nearby village was here to buy some.

[gentle music] So why don't they get this wood from the forest?

- So, the government opens community forest for people to collect only one time in a year because there was a big problem of deforestation and then after that, you have to purchase it from the market, which is expensive.

- This is probably plenty, huh?

[laughs] Curious to see how much this weighs.

Twenty-one and 0.3 kilos.

So this is 45 pounds or 21 kilograms.

How long will that last for cooking?

[Sanukanchi speaks Nepali] - So it goes for two weeks.

- About two weeks?

- Yes.

- So we need 25 of those every year and we just spent 200, so 5,000 per year just for the wood and the fuel.

How much money do you have each year just to spend?

[Amod and Sanukanchi speaking Nepali] - She says she doesn't know the exact, but according to her, she spends a lot of money.

- Probably, maybe half of-- - Yeah, half of her income.

- Just on fuel for the fire, yeah.

That's a tremendous amount.

- Yeah.

[gentle music] [Scott] Wow.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [Scott and children speaking Nepali] [Scott and children speaking Nepali] [Scott laughs] - So people have been cooking over wood and solid fuels for many hundreds of years.

[Amod] Thousands of years, and it's good because you know this allows people to boil water and then give warm food which is also helpful and something healthy but the smoke is the main issue here and so you can see there's no ventilation in the window opening for the smoke to go out.

- Amod showed me the indoor air pollution measurements for this house without the fire burning and with it.

- Yeah, the average would be around 30 microgram per cubic meter.

[Scott] So two or three times a day we're going to 900.

[Amod] Yeah, when they're fired.

[Scott] Fifteen to 20 times... every day.

[children playing] That's just, uh... You can hear the kids, you can hear their lungs, you can hear when they cough.

And you've been cooking in your home all your life?

[Amod and Sanukanchi speak in Nepali] - Yes, she has always used a biomass stove, she has not used any other modern fuel.

- I mean you can see the smoke completely darken rafters.

[Amod] Yeah.

[Scott] That's really remarkable with the exposure through their lives - Yeah, they're exposed to this smoke, you know.

[Scott] It's constant.

[gentle music] [Amod] She's a health volunteer.

[Scott] Oh okay, she goes around to the different villages?

[Amod] Yeah, so all households.

[Scott] Now she's going to do what?

[Amod] She checks the respiratory symptoms on the children and blood pressure.

[Scott] How often?

[Amod] Every three months, so this is a part of our current ongoing activities.

Biomass users are usually, we have found, have high blood pressure compared with biogas users.

And smoke increases the risk of hypertension.

Hypertension is one of the main problems among adults.

[Scott] Interesting.

[Amod] And the respiratory illnesses is one of the chief causes of death in Nepal.

So it's a big problem here.

- What is it?

140 over 97.

That's quite high and she's a young person.

[Sanukanchi speaks Nepali] - That's a high pressure.

In nearby Bhaktapur, Amod took me to Siddhi Memorial Hospital to see the health effects of breathing smoke.

[child crying] [Scott] Hi Doctor.

It's nice to meet you.

- She's beautiful.

[child crying] [Doctor speaks Nepali] - Hey, hey.

[child crying and coughing] [child crying and coughing] [child crying and coughing] - How many do you see like this every day, who have the respiratory?

How many kids?

[gentle music] [machine whirring] [child crying] - The electricity's not working.

[child crying and coughing] Switch sockets.

- This is a very common problem in Nepal, and our study here, which was conducted here in the same hospital, we also found a very strong association between pneumonia and users using biomass fuel.

[Scott] We couldn't breathe after two hours this morning.

- Yeah, yeah, imagine the breathing for a long time.

[Scott] Sadly, children die frequently here of pneumonia and related diseases and they're not alone.

Nearly three billion people still burn wood or other biomass as their primary energy source and three million of them, mostly mothers and their children, die each year from breathing the smoke.

Three million.

Clearly one of the most important challenges in the world today is moving from biomass to something else.

[gentle music] One alternative that's gaining popularity, especially in rural areas, is biogas.

It's methane, just like natural gas, but it's made right here on the farm.

So, we're going to get biomass and look at biogas.

[Amod] So we will use dung.

[Scott] We'll use dung?

- Yeah, this is cow dung.

- What's she gonna do?

- So she'll put this dung in the bucket.

- She will?

- Yeah.

[Scott] I guess I probably ought to help, huh?

All right, oh nice.

That's nice.

Oh yeah, biogas.

Nice, that's just a fresh one.

[all laugh] - She will put water, do you want to wash your hands?

- Oh yeah yeah, I'll wash my hands, sure.

- It solved two purposes.

- There you go.

[woman speaks foreign language] - So you gotta mix it first.

It has to be thoroughly mixed.

- I'm glad I already washed my hands.

[both laugh] - It has to be thoroughly mixed and that should... - Is it good?

Now your turn.

Okay?

Now I take this here?

[woman speaks foreign language] Oh yeah, that's nice, that's not very deep.

[sludge sloshing] [Scott groans] [Amod] The toilet is also connected.

- Nobody's there, luckily, just opened the door on them.

So Amod, you know we've got a concrete canister and a bunch of stuff in it [chuckles] and then there's gas up in the kitchen.

What's the process?

- So this is an inlet, you put a mix of dung and then water you stir it and it goes inside the digester, it's a big digester.

It's a large digester inside, it's covered, and then methanogenic bacteria then works on the manure, the slurry, and then it generates biogas and then people get biogas through that pipe, that yellow pipe, and it goes to that house.

- Are there, do you have to put in enhancers to create the process of digestion or is it just natural?

- It's natural, just happens.

So yeah, when it is newly constructed, so that you have to leave dung for about one month, so gradually it builds bacteria.

- Very natural.

- Very natural, everything is natural.

[gentle music] - Ah, smells good, tea.

[Amod and woman speak Nepali] [Amod] So she's using biogas for the last 16 years.

- Sixteen years?

And you like it?

[Amod and woman speak Nepali] - It's free.

[speaking Nepali] - So you have one cow, they drink the milk and use the dung.

- Drink the milk, they use the dung and you cook again, it's a perfect circle.

[all chuckle] [Amod] She has put sugar, so she's asking... [woman speaking Nepali] [Amod] ...enough for now.

- Oh it's very good, very good just how I like it, perfect.

- So what happens is, during the winter time because biogas depends on temperature and during winter time, the gas yield is low so usually what people were doing, they were used to cook on mudstone, so we are encouraging them to use induction or LPG during winter time so that they can get clean air throughout the year.

- Right.

What have you seen and the differences between?

- A lot.

- Night and day.

- Yeah, the wood stove kitchen we usually see 500, 600 microgram per cubic meter.

In this kitchen we see 20, 17.

- Which is just acceptable levels completely.

[insects chirping] Wow, this is quite an operation.

[speaking Nepali] - He's building new biogas system.

- So where do you put in the dung and the water and... - So it will be there.

[Scott] That's a big room.

[Amod] It's a big room, yeah.

- There's a concrete dome over the big chamber.

And how much biogas will this make?

[speaking Nepali] - So it provides you gas, enough for eight hours, to cook food for six family members.

- Wow!

How much does it cost to build the system like this?

[speaking Nepali] - So it costs 70,000 to 100,000.

- So 700 to 1,000 dollars.

- And the government provides a subsidy of 300 dollars.

- Gotcha.

So, wonderful system.

Where can it be put around the world?

- Yeah, it can go a lot of places.

For example, if it works in Nepal, there are lots of opportunities to upscale this in South Asia and Africa... - South America.

- South America.

- Sure.

- If it's possible in Nepal, it's possible everywhere.

- Right, right.

Nepal's more urban areas have opted for a different gas solution.

In a suburb of the capital city, Kathmandu, this plant bottles liquefied petroleum gas or LPG.

We are surrounded by canisters.

- Yes, so these are LPG, propane, and butane mixed gas which is mainly people used for cooking.

Once they saw this gas coming in, this is clean, people decided to switch, mainly in the valley.

Now these gases are all over the country wherever there are good networks.

- So this operation is really growing then.

- It's growing, it's growing at the rate of like, LPG consumption is growing at the rate of 13% every year.

[Scott] Every year.

[engine rumbling, beeping] So, we talked about, it's a better fuel than wood and biomass.

What are some of the challenges?

- Oh, there are many challenges.

For example, 100% comes from India.

Nepal is dependent on India.

And there have been some hiccups like there was a blockade in 2015 immediately after the earthquake and supply was cut for about five, six months because Nepal has a different, you know, very difficult geography.

- And of course then there's a cost to the government in subsidies.

- Yes, it's about 300 rupees, like three dollars.

- Okay.

- Per cylinder.

- Helps the user.

- Yes, but again it's costly for the government.

And price is increasing also, that's another challenge because it depends on international market price also.

- Nothing's perfect.

- Nothing's perfect.

- You ready to take us?

[upbeat music] So it's interesting where all the different people live and things.

I mean, these look like pretty modern buildings over here.

In lieu of pipelines, this is Nepal's LPG distribution system.

Gas comes from refineries in India, on ever smaller modes of transportation, to reach the people who use it.

- We'll put this cylinder on a bicycle.

- On a bicycle?

- On a bicycle, yeah.

- We're going to put these on a bicycle.

- On a bicycle.

- Oh good.

- Yeah, so one bike can carry two canisters.

- I'll hold the bike.

You can load them up.

Okay.

So... Oh yeah, that's 70 pounds.

[laughs] Perfect.

Are we good?

- Yeah.

- This is me.

- Just go straight, and then turn left and I'll see you there, okay?

- Okay, I'll try to go straight.

This might not go very straight, but we're gonna give it a good run.

Wow, where do my heels go?

All right, we're out of here!

[grunts] [laughs] Woo!

Oh!

[Scott laughs] [bicycle bell rings] They're very heavy.

All right.

Let's see here.

Lean the bike.

[clanging] Here we go.

Watch your head.

[Amod and customer speak Nepali] [Scott] All right.

[lighter clicks] Ah!

- It's a blue flame.

- Perfect.

And no emissions, no smoke.

- No smoke.

- Very clean.

- Yes, very clean.

- You enjoy the cooking with the gas?

[Amod and customer speak Nepali] - It's easy.

- It's easy, yeah.

Both LPG and biogas are much healthier than wood but there's one alternative that makes no indoor air pollution at all.

It's beautiful.

Got lots of different ways to cook I can see already.

- This is making a meal.

- On the electric.

- You've never cooked over wood so you'll never know that?

Your generation is gas and electricity, right?

Are you doing the same kind of testing and health measurements that we were doing in other places?

- Yeah, so we're measuring blood pressure on all main cooks.

We met community health manager outside.

So she will measure her blood pressure and we can see the difference.

- Do a comparison.

Let's go!

[chuckles] [upbeat music] [Health Monitor] One hundred twelve by eighty.

- So you can see ,she has a blood pressure level of 112 by 80.

And yesterday you saw on Sanukanchi, she had 148 by 86 or something.

The only difference is that she cooks on a clean cook stove-- LPG, biogas, is exposed to less smoke than her.

- You got a long time ahead of you, many good years.

[laughs]] ♪ ♪ - So Scott, this is the store that I was referring to.

So she's one of the entrepreneurs.

There's also female community health volunteers.

- Nice to meet you.

- So, do you want to see... - Yeah, let's take a look.

[Amod and health volunteer speak foreign language] - So you want to cook rice, then you press this rice button, so you're going to boil water, then you press the water button.

If you want to fry anything then you can just press this and then you'll get that.

- That's beautiful.

So how many of these have you sold in your store?

[Amod and health volunteer speak Nepali] - So overall 60 induction stoves have been sold but she has sold 10.

- Ten from here.

And how and how much time did that take?

[Amod and health volunteer speak Nepali] - Yeah, within a month.

- Wow!

That's amazing.

Are you seeing that bigger trend in the valley as well?

- Yes.

- How much would this cost?

[Amod and health volunteer speak Nepali] - Five thousand five hundred Nepali rupees.

- Five thousand five hundred rupees?

So that's about 55 dollars, that's... that's a lot.

But you're selling, still, that many.

You know what?

Sold!

I'll take it.

I'll take it today.

That's beautiful.

Thank you so much.

[Health Volunteer] Thank you.

- This is gonna be great.

[gentle music] - Sanukanchi?

Namaste.

- We have something to give you.

[Amod speaking Nepali] - Electric cooking.

[Amod speaking Nepali] - Have you seen that before?

[Amod speaking Nepali] [Amod] No.

- Should we open it?

[Amod and Sanukanchi speak Nepali] - Yeah.

It's for your pot to sit.

This goes here.

Okay.

Now we plug it to electricity, which Amod will help you get to your house.

And it costs less money than... [Sanukanchi speaking Nepali] [Sanukanchi speaking Nepali] - Very good.

And there'll be no smoke.

[Amod speaking Nepali] [Sanukanchi speaking Nepali] [Amod] So, yeah, there'll be no smoke.

[Sanukanchi speaking Nepali] - She's asking if you would like to have tea.

- Absolutely!

Let's have tea!

Amod and I went back to the city to wrap up my visit to Nepal.

Like many developing countries, Nepal is a traditional society with a culture stretching back centuries.

Still, change is coming.

LPG use is growing rapidly in the cities and their surrounding areas, as it's doing throughout developing Asia and Africa, where there are refineries to produce the gas and road systems to transport it.

In Nepal's more rural areas, there are already half a million biogas systems supported by a government subsidy program.

Similar systems could work across the developing world where there's livestock to fuel them and temperate climates to keep them from freezing or drying out.

Here and around the world electric-cooker stoves are becoming more popular, where people have access to grid electricity.

But there are a few challenges to their broader adoption.

When we think of converting to electric induction cooking, is there resistance to this change?

- Yeah, still when we ask why you're still using wood, then people say that's it for the test they're like, food prepared or the fire for the test.

Another thing is that most households have livestock inside their house, so they think that you know the smoke would help you know keep the mosquitoes and flies away.

- That transition is going to require more reliable electricity, particularly in the rural areas.

Does everybody have electricity in their home?

- Yeah not in all areas, because voltage fluctuates and electricity was not reliable and still not reliable in some parts of rural areas.

- What makes you the most proud of the work that you've done?

- Only 50 households now have only a mud stove, no other secondary stove.

- Out of 773.

- We also did a study on who adopted this modern stove.

And what we found is that you know if the woman is the head of the family, if she's the main decision maker, we found, you know, those households adopting cleaner fuel more than other households where the male is the head of the household.

That's what we found, so women, education, and head of the household status, you know, these are important determinants.

Once we'll have you know all these households using clean fuel, that will be a very proud moment for me.

- In Nepal, and everywhere in the world, energy is tied into culture, education, women's rights, so many issues.

As cleaner cooking fuels come to developing countries, they'll bring better health, more convenience, and more time to pursue other things.

In some ways they will modernize traditional cultures.

Most of those changes will be welcomed.

[gentle music] ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪