1. Short-Rotation Coppice (SRC) agroforestry for
charcoal small business in Papua New Guinea
Ian K. Nuberg
University of Adelaide, Australia
Foundation for People and
Community Development, Inc.
HOPE worldwide (PNG) People’s Action for Rural
Development

2. Acknowledgements
Brian Gunn Russel Haines and Tony Bartlett
Jessie Abiuda-Mitir, Agnes Sumareke, Maman Tavan, and John Paul
Yati Bun, Israel Bewang, Bazakie Baput, Bonti Krasi, Fletcher Onise, Kafuri Yaro, and
Linzon Zamang
Kumani Kuman, Graham Ogle, Vanoa Geno, Titus Tobias, Tom Yale and Alex Aruai
Joseph Pumai, Randall Manapangkec and Agnes Frank
Dessy Kusbandi and Olena Kravchuk Ben Robinson, Rob Brook
Landholders participating in SRC field trials:
Patrick Barkri, Yona Mark, Manaka Bore, Barbara Elias, John Eka, Ulkamara
Womens Group, and Mt Sinai Bible College
Charcoal producer-vendor groups:
Apie Welkam Marketing Service, Eety Charcoal Enterprise, Manda Family
Group, Wampup Ragin, Yasugau Family Group, Traim Tsol, Gobadik group, Muddy
Group, and Komani Charcoal Group

3. Waghi Valley, Mount Hagen district, Western Highlands Province.
Traditionally preferred fuelwood is “Yar”, or Casuarina oligodon
All land and trees are under traditional customary ownership
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E
Background

4. Fuelwood market and Garden system
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E
Roadside fuelwood vendor on temporary site,
Port Moresby, National Capital District
Highland sweet-potato / pig garden systems in
a complex landscape of use and ownership
Team of fuelwood retailers on permanent site,
Mount Hagen, Western Highlands Province
Industrial sector (e.g. tea plantations) also
have high fuelwood demand
Background

5. Research methods to facilitate
agroforestry-based small business
• Quantitative and qualitative social
research methods to describe the
fuelwood economy
• Field, laboratory and consumer
trials to evaluate a range of
candidate SRC species for their
value in fuelwood and charcoal
production
• Participatory action research
methods to facilitate the
establishment charcoal producer-
vendor groups
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

6. Lae
Port Moresby
Mt Hagen
Western
Highlands
Morobe
West New Britain
East New Britain
NCD
Chimbu
Eastern
Highlands
AUSTRALIA
INDONEISA
Papua New Guinea: survey regions
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E
Fuelwood Survey

7. Fuelwood survey methods
• Questionnaire survey of urban and
rural domestic users (n= 3,966) and
sellers (n=156)
• Case study monitoring of actual
daily fuelwood use over two one-
week periods (n=36)
• Semi-structured interviews of
commercial and industrial users
and institutional stakeholders
(n = 76)
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E
Determining mass : price relationship of fuelwood on sale
Producing lime from coral and seashells on the Salamaua
coast, Morobe Province
Fuelwood Survey

8. Case-study monitoring of daily fuelwood use
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
AverageDailyfuelwooduse(kg/d)
Urban (dark solid) and Rural (light broken) Case Studies
Fuelwood Survey
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

9. Urban flow of collected fuelwood, district volume in thousands m3 /y, per capita consumption m3 /person/y (red)
Rural flow of collected fuelwood, volume in thousands m3 /y , per capita consumption m3 /person/y (green)
Flow of fuelwood for sale, value in millions Kina /y (blue)
Fuelwood Survey
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

10. Survey conclusions
• Fuelwood use here to stay foreseeable future
• Economy is large, informal, simple and flat with
few intermediaries between collector and seller.
• Main problems are access to fuelwood and
transport to market
• No institutional support but no regulatory barriers
or extra costs
• Great opportunity for entrepreneurs to create a
more sophisticated fuelwood supply chain that
could deliver sustainably harvested and value-
added fuelwood to consumers, especially in urban
areas and the commercial sector.
Fuelwood Survey
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

11. Field evaluation of SRC species
• 10 species at 2 spacings
in 3 replicated field sites
(highland and lowland)
• Farmer-managed
woodlots and alley-farm
systems
• Laboratory tests of
burning quality of wood
and charcoal
• Consumer preference
• Market performance
Evaluation of SRC species
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

12. Field trial results
Evaluation of SRC species
rainfall
Median fuelwood volume (m3) for closed spaced (1.5m * 1.0m) woodlot of 500m2
Error bars = Standard Error of Mean
Values adjusted to corresponding expected survival rates
Mount Hagen, Highlands site Port Moresby, Lowlands site
Commonly used local species
(but does not coppice)
Commonly used local species
67% coppice
95% coppice
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

13. What highlanders think of fast-grown firewood
We asked some landholders to cook with our fast-grown firewoods which took only 2 years to grow.
We asked them to compare these fast-grown firewoods with the slow-grown firewood they normally collect.
This is what they said for each of the 7 trees we gave them
Eucalyptus grandis
• less smoke
• better heat, long burning
• coals last the same
• easy to split and use
Eucalyptus robusta
• slightly smokier
• very good heat, long burning
• coals die quicker
• remove bark before use
Eucalyptus pellita
• smoke the same
• not as hot or long burning
• coals die quicker
• not good for starting fire
Leucaena
• smoke the same
• not as hot or long burning
• coals die quicker
• very good to start fire
Calliandra
• much less smoke
• not as hot or long burning
• coals die quicker
• very good to start fire
Local Yar
• smoke same
• heat same
• coals same
• easy to split and use
Indonesian Yar
• slightly smokier
• better heat, long burning
• coals last long
• difficult to split
Evaluation of SRC species
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

14. Comparison of estimated gross returns and return to labour
of SRC, coffee and sweet potato crops
Alternatives to SRC SRC-Firewood SRC-Poles SRC-Charcoal
Sweet potato
Coffea
arabica
E.grandis E.robusta E.robusta
E.grandis
E.robusta
Gross Return Kina/ha 7 200 4 050 7 297 6 265 2 330 5 212
Labour Inputs
persondays/h
a
350 275 170 170 150 220
Return to Labour
Kina/person/
d 21 15 43 37 16 24
US$/person/d 9.77 6.98 20.00 17.21 7.44 11.16
Comment
Competition;
difficult
transport
Ready cash,
women work,
men get money
Maybe market resistance
due to appearance
Side-line
market
(Nuberg et al, 2014)
Notes: Sweet potato and Coffee values from Table 5.20.1 in ‘Food and Agriculture in PNG’ Bourke et al
(2009) with update from Bourke pers.com. 20 Feb. 2013.
SRC Firewood and pole gross margin based on volume and pole length data of 1.5 m x 1.0 m
spacing;
Price is conservatively set at 70% of surveyed firewood prices and pole value in Mt Hagen;
SRC Labour inputs estimated as: ground preparation 60; planting 30; weeding in first year 20;
harvest and prepare for market firewood 60, poles 40, charcoal 110.
SRC Charcoal gross return and return to labour based on volumes and charcoal business plan
prepared by Manapangkec (2012)
1.00 Kina = 0.465 USD exchange rate at 2 April 2013
Evaluation of SRC species
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

15. Charcoal producer-vendor method
• Advertise for participants
• Training activities in:
– Small business planning
– Charcoal production
– Charcoal stove construction
– Nursery techniques for SRC species
• Action research
– Groups develop own business plan
and group structure
– Guidance with microcredit loans
– Monitoring and guidance of group
progress
• Promotion of charcoal concept
• Semi-Structured interviews in
community development sector to
survey existing models of collective
business engagement (n=41)
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

16. Charcoal business modelsMt Hagen ‘Lead Charcoal Producer’ Model
Lae ‘Charcoal Wantok’ Model
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

17. Conclusions
• Inter-Disciplinary approach essential for
complex problems
• Facilitation of small-business requires:
– long term commitment
– training and support across whole value-chain
– respect and adaptation for regional cultural
differences
• Need for formal recognition and support by
national and provincial governments
A UST R A LIA N C E NT R E FOR I NT E R NA T IONA L A GR ICULT UR A L RE SE A R CH U NIVE R SIT Y OF A D E LA ID E P A PUA NE W GUINE A F OR E ST RE SE A R CH I NST IT UT E

19. Core quantitative dimensions of fuelwood economy as determined by
questionnaire surveys of domestic users, sellers and case study monitoring
Regions of fuelwood stress surveyed
URBAN RURAL
National Capital
District
Lae,
Morobe
Mt Hagen
Western Highlands
Lae,
Morobe
Highlands
Western & Eastern,
Chimbu
Population 254,158 78,692 27,877 40,486 150,916
Sample size 1,868 558 247 285 996
% sample using fuelwood (FW) over past 12 months 73 90 87 98 100
% FW user population buying over last 2 week 24 27 47 7 4
Average spent over 2 weeks in USD
$9.06 $10.04 $9.48 $12.83 $11.20
Gender equity index for fuelwood collection ** 1.0 0.9 0.6 1.1 0.9
Gender equity index for fuelwood purchase 1.0 0.7 0.7 0.5 0.5
% FW users who have planted trees in past 2 years 44 25 54 83 96
% FW users experienced conflict over access to FW 48 40 58 51 61-88
% FW sellers with access to land to grow trees 86 39 88 39 89
Average price PGK / kg for FW on sale 0.30 0.49 1.15 0.58 0.33
Average (max) distance in km sellers source their FW 10 (25) 3 (5) 6 (30) 3 (5) 23 (40)
% domestic FW users also using FW commercially 26 58
% domestic FW users also selling fuelwood 3 10
% for whom FW more difficult to access over past 2 y 65 41
Daily household fuelwood use
Recalled data from domestic user surveys, kg/d 9.6 10.6 5.6 8.9 21.1
Daily monitoring case study households over 2 weeks
Number of households monitored 13 23
Average daily fuelwood use, kg/d
11.1 32.5
Median daily fuelwood use, kg/d 11.6 27.3
** Gender equity index = ratio of the relative proportion of instances of female activity in relation to the region sample size, to instances of male activity.
Within a region, if men and women share the load equally in collecting and buying fuelwood, i.e. a 1:1 ratio, then the index = 1.0 . If there are more instances
of men’s activity then index <1, if women more active >1. A change in 0.1 units of the index reflects a change in 10% of the regional population.
Fuelwood Survey