Fuel costs tied to conflict in Iran drive return to charcoal, putting conservation gains at risk

Before dusk in Nairobi’s Kibera settlement, turning a gas knob no longer brings a blue flame. For residents like Brenda Obare, cooking now means lighting a charcoal burner outside her home as liquefied petroleum gas becomes a luxury. A global spike in fuel prices, described as largely spurred by the ongoing conflict in Iran, is forcing similar shifts across parts of Africa and South Asia.

The move back from LPG to charcoal and firewood—something governments have worked for years to reverse—carries stark health and environmental risks. Conservationists warn that rising demand for charcoal is accelerating deforestation, degrading wildlife habitats and aggravating human-wildlife conflicts.

Households in low-income neighborhoods such as Kibera in Nairobi and Bhalswa in Delhi are among those reverting to biomass fuels as cooking costs climb. The reversal threatens gains made in cleaner cooking adoption intended to curb indoor air pollution and improve living standards.

The strain extends to conservation finance. As fuel prices rise and travel costs bite, tourism dwindles in regions that rely on it for income, weakening funding for wildlife protection and leaving already fragile ecosystems more vulnerable.

With fuel costs still elevated, the pressure on families and forests is unlikely to ease quickly, conservationists caution—raising fears that years of progress in public health and habitat conservation could be undone.