Fuelwood Consumption and its Impact on Forests in the Teknaf Peninsula on the Southern Coast of Bangladesh

Abstract

This study focuses on the household fuelwood in the Teknaf Peninsula of Bangladesh. Teknaf Peninsula has a protected forest area which is facing the threat of extinction due to the over dependency of the local people. Among the subsistence activities, harvesting fuelwood from the protected forest area is the most common and also a significant cause for the deforestation. This study aimed to determine the household fuelwood consumption and factors influencing the consumption. Data was collected during March 2015 using structured questionnaire to interview the sampled households. Among the 42 households the average annual consumption of fuelwood per person was found 1168 kg, which is quit higher than other similar studies around the world. Among the considered factors only family size influenced the fuelwood consumption. According to the current reports and our fuelwood consumption study the forest is not capable to provide fuelwood in a sustainable way.