ABSTRACT
Most of the Third World’s poorest people live in rural areas, where biomass fuels are the main source of energy. They are used by all, poor and rich alike, but it is the poor who are hit first and hardest by shortages of such fuels. In rural areas fuelwood use can be understood only at a local level because it is produced and consumed at this level. In most rural areas, biomass fuels are gathered freely from the local environment. One of the most important features of the contemporary Third World is rapid urban growth. Towns and cities are growing at an unprecedented rate, and the urbanization process is transforming many features of the economies and societies of many regions. The growth of the urban population is paralleled by the growth of urban energy consumption. Fuelwood is frequently the main fuel for much of the urban poor. This is particularly true in poorer Third World countries.
