Energy Efficiency

Cookstoves
Safe Water (borehole)
Safe Water (filtration)
Autoclaved Aerated Concrete Blocks
Energy efficiency projects aim to reduce the amount of energy used to do something
Not as well known as renewable energy, it delivers emission reductions from a wide range of projects
The emission reductions achieved by the energy efficiency action are credited and can be used as an offset
When you buy an energy efficiency carbon offset, you are buying these reduced emissions
More Than Changing Light Bulbs
Many think of energy efficiency as being about “changing light bulbs”
Some projects do focus on using more efficient technologies for lighting, heating or cooling systems, or for a factory’s process equipment. Others install energy saving appliances/ products in homes or businesses.
Cogeneration (combined heat and power) and Combined Cycle Gas Turbine (CCGT) projects are also energy efficiency projects
Energy efficiency also offers so much more – cookstoves, safe water, Autoclaved Aerated Concrete blocks among others
Improving Living Conditions
Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser (2021) – “Clean Water and Sanitation”. Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: ‘https://ourworldindata.org/clean-water-sanitation’ [Online Resource]
Safe Water
Safe Water means
access to an improved water source on site, available when needed and free from contamination
2,200 million people do not have access to safe water
at least 2 billion people’s source of drinking water is contaminated with faeces
Basic services means not having to walk more than 15 minutes for clean water
785 million cannot even access this
144 million rely on water from untreated surface water like lakes, ponds, rivers and streams
Cookstoves
Around 2,600 million people cook using open fires or simple inefficient stoves
They use firewood, charcoal, animal dung, crop wastes, kerosene and coal
Improving stove efficiency reduces the fuel used – better burning also reduces smoke indoors
Nearly 4 million people will die prematurely this year from household air pollution
Almost 50% of pneumonia deaths in kids under 5 years are caused by breathing soot
Hannah Ritchie and Max Roser (2013) – “Indoor Air Pollution”. Published online at OurWorldInData.org. Retrieved from: ‘https://ourworldindata.org/indoor-air-pollution’ [Online Resource]
Energy Efficiency Technologies
Cookstoves
Projects involve manufacturing and/or disseminating 1000’s of highly efficient cookstoves
Cookstoves can come in different sizes to help families and small to medium sized businesses
The cookstove may include a ceramic liner to increase combustion efficiency and retain heat
Some are 50% more fuel efficient than traditional methods
Replaces coal and other solid fuels (firewood, charcoal, dung, straw) for cooking and heating

Cookstoves reduce emissions, help curb deforestation and improve indoor air quality
They provide relief from high fuel costs, decrease the time and energy spent collecting fuel, cook faster and improve health by creating less indoor pollution
They help protect family members from burns and accidents common to open-air fires
Projects can contribute to gender equality and empowerment of women. They provide ownership of a new asset, the stove
Safe Water (Borehole Rehabilitation)
Many rural areas are characterized by poor access to clean drinking water
Water sources (boreholes, wells etc) often suffer suffer micro-biological contamination and are polluted by salt
These projects are often small scale and involve the installation or rehabilitation of water supply and/or purification systems, typically solar powered
This removes the need to boil water using local fuels

Reduced demand for fuel lowers forest biomass removal, helping maintain biodiversity
Helps improve hygiene, social, economic and environmental issues
Reduced indoor air pollution improves health of people in the household
Water-borne diseases due to unsafe drinking water successfully addressed
Projects help raise hygiene awareness among local population
Safe Water (Filtration)
Point-of-use water filters treat contaminated drinking water
Microbiological purifier delivers clean drinking water
Requires no electricity or additional consumables beyond the unit itself
Removes the need to boil water using non-renewable biomass
Carbon finance is helping provide a significant improvement in public health

Avoids firewood and charcoal being burned, slowing deforestation and degradation
Reducing pressure on local forests helps maintain biodiversity
Reduced incidence of waterborne diseases, especially among under 5’s
Women and children spend less time gathering and carrying firewood
Improved indoor air quality from not burning firewood to heat water
Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (AAC) Blocks
AAC blocks are high-quality walling and wall insulating building materials
Produced using an efficient, low energy intensive brick production process, unlike brick trench kilns
AAC blocks don’t require any sintering or kiln heating for block consolidation
Sintering or firing ‘green’ bricks in a kiln uses large amounts of thermal energy, usually fossil fuel
While AAC blocks do require electricity and steam generation, the energy use is much less than brick kilns’ use

AAC blocks use waste materials or by-products from other industries; an example of circular economy
Manufacturing process creates employment for large numbers of skilled and unskilled people
Local and regional air quality improved
AAC blocks are energy efficient, provide 6-10 times better thermal insulation than regular concrete
Non-toxic, fire resistant, excellent sound absorption and low density lightweight building material
Project Examples
Cookstoves
GS 7312
Gold Standard
Nigeria
Manufacture and distribution of over 164,000 highly efficient improved cookstoves
Beyond the Carbon
Improved indoor air quality helps women and children’s health, gender equality and women’s empowerment, and helps curb deforestation
Safe Water (boreholes)
GS 6443
Gold Standard
Thiès Region, Senegal
Solar powered water supply and/or purification systems, providing clean water to over 3,200 people
Beyond the Carbon
Decreased forest degradation, improved indoor air quality and household health, and less time spent collecting water and firewood
Safe Water (filtration)
GS 886
Gold Standard
Western Province, Kenya
Over 1 million instant microbiological purification family units distributed across 19 districts
Beyond the Carbon
Women and children spend less time getting firewood, improved indoor air quality and reduced waterborne diseases, especially under-5s
AAC Blocks
VCS 1549
Verified Carbon Standard
Madhya Pradesh, India
Efficient production process uses steam generated from waste biomass instead of coal fired kilns
Beyond the Carbon
Example of circular economy, creates local employment, improves local air quality and creates light weight, thermally efficient building materials
Visit our Carbon Store
All the projects sold by Beyond Neutral are accredited under either VCS or Gold Standard , so the offset you buy has been created by a project
- that follows a specific methodology
- has been verified as having occurred by one of that Standard’s third party verification bodies
- is tracked in that Standard’s Registry using a unique serial number from issuance until retirement on your behalf