Zimbabwe to Invest in Solar Energy to Sustain Forests

Sep 23 - Xinhua News Agency - CEIS

Zimbabwe to invest in solar energy to sustain forests

HARARE, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Zimbabwean government will make substantial investments in the use of solar energy in order to sustain forests and preserve human health, according to the Herald newspaper on Wednesday.

Secretary for Environment and Tourism Margaret Sangarwe was quoted as saying that the heavy use of firewood has been blamed for air pollution.

Sangarwe said there has been massive land degradation due to deforestation in most rural and newly resettled areas where the communities rely heavily on firewood as a source of energy for cook and lighting.

She said as a result of massive deforestation, rivers and dams were fast silting up, thereby worsening the plight of newly resettled farmers and communities living in rural areas.

Sangarwe said solar energy provided an alternative energy source for household and commercial heating uses.

"The use of solar systems in heating and lighting can go a long way in preserving our natural resources and human health, but the technology is expensive as some of the solar components are imported from other countries," she said.

"The government is looking at ways of enabling people to buy the necessary components," said Sangarwe.

Some households, hospitals, hotels and crocodile breeding ponds in Zimbabwe use solar water heating systems.