Fuel Stacking of Firewood and Use of LPG in Conservation Restricted Villages: Evidence from a Natural Experiment in Bhutan

To reduce reliance on solid biomass wood, particularly high in developing countries, clean fuel initiatives such as LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) are receiving increasing attention. Researchers have analyzed the relationship between access to LPG and continued use of solid biomass fuels under the assumption that access to firewood is easy and free, leading to continued reliance on firewood, a phenomenon known as fuel stacking. However, environmental regulations in some developing countries are changing, and making access to firewood difficult. I focus on fuel stacking under a rural LPG scheme in Bhutan with access to firewood governed by an annual subsidized quota system. I also examine the benefits of time saved from faster cooking with LPG and increased expenditure on electricity through detailed data on firewood consumption, time spent cooking, and energy expenditures on electricity. Data were collected from 176 households from 19 remote villages in Bhutan during four different seasons between 2018 and 2020. I found that rural households use different cooking fuels simultaneously, indicating a continued use of fuelwood and electricity even when LPG is accessible. Results indicate that LPG schemes directed at rural households are not effective in reducing dependence on fuelwood even with the introduction of a subsidized quota system, but rather incentivize fuel stacking.