Charcoal producers happy about revised guidelines

The charcoal industry breathed a sigh of relief after the directorate of forestry amended charcoal regulations last week.According to the Namibian Agricultural Union (NAU), it took two months of collaboration, taking all aspects of the environment, the danger of veld fires and the sustainability of the whole industry into consideration.Regulations promulgated in April this year were, according to the majority of producers, impractical and unworkable.Charcoal workers now only need to keep a five-metre cleared strip around the camp in which they burn coals, or else make a five-metre-wide fire road that is situated at least 200 metres away from the area where charcoal is burned. The requirement for 15-metre-wide fire roads on farm boundaries has been set aside.According to the NAU, farmers only have to notify their neighbours that charcoal production is underway, and no longer need to obtain written permission.Fire roads, however, are a requirement for all farms, not just those on which charcoal is produced. Creating a five-meter fire road on the boundaries of a farm with a size of 2 000 hectares will cost approximately N$70 000.The following measures are prescribed:- The area around the burning site (from the outer perimeter of the kilns) must be cleared for 30 metres. This does not mean that the 30 metres must be graded, but the grass must be cut to the ground and there may be no bush in that area. This is to prevent fires erupting from kilns due to a sudden strong wind, or from sparks that are created by the pyrolysis in the kilns.- Also, 200 metres away from the cleared area, a firebreak of at least 5 metres must be created so that emergency vehicles can access the area safely and quickly.- Harvesting permits will only be issued once an inspection was done and the forestry officials are satisfied that there is no imminent danger arising from the charcoal burning.- Firefighting equipment must be present at the burning sites: knapsack sprayers and fire beaters.- Firefighting training should be provided to all charcoal burners, and it is advisable to provide training to all farm employees.- All neighbours must be informed of charcoal production on a farm.- All access gates to the charcoal burning area must be unlocked and all access roads to the farm must be accessible.- All kilns must be supervised for as long as there is a fire in the kilns.- The normal rules about tree size and protected species have not changed. The emphasis on these guidelines is to manage and control the areas where charcoal burning is conducted.- The Namibia Charcoal Association also advises farmers to do more regular inspections on their burning sites to ensure that the guidelines are followed.- All farmers (not only charcoal producers) must not allow cooking of meals in areas that have not been cleared.- Welding, grading, or any other activity where sparks can set the grass alight, should be done with the utmost care, and with knapsack sprayers on the scene and / or the area should be cleared of tall grass.

Charcoal producers happy about revised guidelines

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-15

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Charcoal producers happy about revised guidelines

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-15

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