Energy sources for rural development

Roger Revelle

Energy, 1979, vol. 4, issue 5, 969-987

Abstract: More energy is needed in the rural areas of developing countries for agriculture, transportation, domestic uses, and industrial development in towns and small cities of the countryside. By the year 2025, rural energy needs in South America, Africa, and Asia, outside the Soviet Union and Japan, could be over 4 TW—half of the present world energy consumption. With known technology most, but not all, of this energy might be supplied by the traditional source of rural energy—the biomass of forest woods and agricultural residues. To obtain a high sustainable yield of biomass, use of some “commercial” energy from fossil fuels or hydroelectric power will usually be necessary. The most serious energy problems will exist in rural Asia, with its high man-land ratios; these are illustrated by the examples of Nepal and Bangladesh. Large capital investments and intensive research and development must be undertaken to ensure adequate future energy supplies for the Asian countries.

Date: 1979
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:energy:v:4:y:1979:i:5:p:969-987

DOI: 10.1016/0360-5442(79)90026-4

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