Analysis of farmers’ willingness to adopt small scale household biogas facilities

Adapting small scale household biogas to the conditions of local farmer households is crucial for the success of the technology. A survey was conducted in 2009~2010 on the current state of biogas facility construction and the problems related with using the facilities in Hebei Plain. A logistic model was built to quantitatively analyze the factors affecting farmers’ will to adopt small scale household biogas facilities in the region. Results showed most farmers were willing to adopt the facility. And governmental biogas extension section was the main resource for the farmers to learn the small scale household biogas. The service system needed to be improved to facilitate the application of the facility. The affecting factors analysis showed that low education levels of household heads negatively influenced the will to adopt the technology. Per-capita net income of farm families and excess labor in families were positively correlated with farmers’ will. Therefore, for developing the small scale household biogas facilities in rural areas, not only farmers’ needs and economic abilities were important, system equity and efficiency were also key points. The personal characteristics of farm family members, features of households and household agro-enterprises were critical too. A comprehensively sustainable adoption required provision of services and supports by the relevant sectors and government.