Ecological study of an Indian village ecosystem: Energetics

Abstract

Biomass energy and human labour are the two main driving forces for functioning of the agriculture-based village ecosystem of Bhabinarayanpur. In the ecosystem, 97·6% of the total fuel energy consumption during the year was derived directly or indirectly from biomass. The direct biomass fuel consumption was 9636 GJ during the year (84%). The other forms of energy used were human labour (1012 GJ year⁻¹; 9%) and draught animal (580 GJ year⁻¹; 5%) for agriculture and domestic purposes. Production and consumption patterns of energy with its outflow and inflow showed that the village was an open and self-insufficient ecosystem. In the present study, an energy-flow model for the village ecosystem was also prepared.