Determinants of Solid Fuel Use and Emission Risks among Households: Insights from Limpopo, South Africa

Emissions from residential solid fuels reduce ambient air quality and cause indoor air pollution resulting in adverse human health. The traditional solid fuels used for cooking include coal, straws, dung, and wood, with the latter identified as the prevalent energy source in developing countries. Emissions from such fuel sources appear to be significant hazards and risk factors for asthma and other respiratory diseases. This study aimed at reporting factors influencing the choice of dominant solid fuel for cooking and determine the emission risk from such solid fuel in three villages of Phalaborwa, Limpopo province, South Africa. The study used descriptive analysis to show the relationship between the socio-economic variables and the choice of cooking fuel at the household level. Multiple correspondence analysis (MCA) was used further to detect and represent underlying structures in the choice of dominant fuels. MCA shows the diversity and existing relationship of how variables are related analytically and graphically. Generalised linear logistic weight estimation procedure (WLS) was also used to investigate the factors influencing choice of fuel used and the inherent emission risks. In the three villages, wood was the prevalent cooking fuel with 76.8% of participant households using it during the summer and winter seasons. Variables such as low monthly income, level of education, and system of burning are revealed as strong predictors of wood fuel usage. Moreover, income, water heating energy, types of wood, and number of cooking hours are significant (p ≤ 0.05) in influencing emission from wood fuel in the community. A notable conclusion is that variables such as income, education status and system of burning are determinants of wood fuel usage in the three villages, while income, water heating energy, types of wood and number of hours influence vulnerability to household emission and possible health risks in the use of solid energy sources.