Since the war erupted in Khartoum and spread into White Nile State, Al-Qutaina has faced an unprecedented fuel crisis; after the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) seized the city on Dec. 21, 2023, supplies of fuel and cooking gas were cut off, forcing residents to rely on arduous alternatives such as charcoal and firewood to sustain daily life. Even after the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) retook control, the crisis persisted, with a gas cylinder reaching about 88,700 Sudanese pounds, compelling citizens to continue using charcoal and firewood, generating clear environmental and health impacts as thick smoke blankets the city and its residents.
During a field visit to Al-Qutaina, an Atar correspondent observed charcoal kilns spread across residential neighborhoods, where owners cut trees from the surrounding dense vegetation and transport firewood on handcarts into homes to fuel kilns in a process that lasts an entire day.
Choking kilns
Charcoal smoke and indoor air pollution are increasing asthma and allergies among children, women and the elderly.
Khadija Abdelrahman, resident of Al-Qutaina
Residents in neighborhoods where these kilns operate describe how rising smoke turns their lives into daily suffering, in evening hours, when heavy odors spread homes and families are forced to tightly close windows
Residents called on local authorities to intervene and set clear rules, either relocating kilns outside residential areas or forcing owners to adopt measures reducing harm environment
Khadija Abdelrahman, a resident of Al-Qutaina, says she now relies entirely on charcoal and firewood for her daily survival due to war conditions, rising gas prices and weak household incomes
In her interview with Atar, she explains charcoal use leaves health effects on residents, due to heavy rising smoke and indoor air pollution, “which leads to increased rates of asthma and allergies among children, women and elderly,” says Khadija.
Reem al-Jaili, who also lives in Al-Qutaina, says obtaining firewood has become exhausting and time-consuming, alongside rising charcoal sack prices reaching between 57,000 and 65,000 Sudanese pounds depending on quality. A household needs more than one bag daily to meet cooking needs. She told Atar that charcoal use directly affects home cleanliness due to smoke and scattered ash, placing an additional burden on women in daily cleaning.
Reem agrees with Khadija in observing the health impact of rising charcoal smoke, which causes respiratory diseases and eye irritation, affecting the elderly, children, and patients with chest conditions and allergies.
In conclusion, Reem emphasizes that reliance on charcoal has become extremely costly, describing the kilns spread across neighborhoods as “very bad” due to worsening health and environmental damage in the Al-Qutaina area.
Deadly charcoal
When mesquite trees are cut for charcoal, snakes move unpredictably from their habitats, increasing snakebite incidents among residents, especially in outlying areas.
Montaser al-Sir, insurance company manager and resident of Al-Qutaina
Montaser al-Sir, a resident of Al-Qutaina and an insurance company manager, says reliance on firewood and charcoal, particularly those produced from mesquite trees, brings extensive damage spanning animals and humans alike. He explains that mesquite trees are densely spread in grazing areas, where livestock carry their seeds through feeding, which has helped expand their growth range.
He added that this tree causes serious diseases in animals, most notably what is known as “turning,” resulting from fluid filling the skull cavity, leading to loss of balance and eventual death shortly afterward.
In his interview with Atar, Montaser notes that mesquite trees also create a fertile environment for the spread of venomous snakes. When trees are cut, snakes move unpredictably, increasing snakebite incidents among residents, especially in outlying areas.
As for human health, he says the thick smoke rising from burning mesquite charcoal, especially when the firewood is incompletely burned, leads to smoke buildup inside enclosed rooms during cooking. He suggests this may play a direct role in serious illnesses such as chest allergies, with cancer cases reportedly increasing to a noticeable degree in Al-Qutaina in recent times.
Montaser called on relevant authorities, including forestry officials and the Ministry of Agriculture, to organize public awareness seminars on the serious risks of using mesquite charcoal, stressing that the city lacks any meaningful vegetation cover except for this harmful type of tree.
Desertification surge
The war did not only destroy livelihoods, it also opened the door to massive illegal logging. Forests once protected this area from desertification and rising temperatures.
Khaleel Hussein, director of the National Forestry Corporation branch in Al-Qutaina
Khaleel Hussein, director of the National Forestry Corporation’s Al-Qutaina branch, says Al-Qutaina locality — particularly its northern parts — is among the most vulnerable areas to desertification, due to the spread of sand dunes that continue to advance under wind pressure. He explained that the National Forestry Corporation has been working for years to confront this threat through large-scale afforestation efforts, including sowing seeds across dunes and flat lands, as well as distributing seedlings to farms, homes, and institutions of various kinds, stressing that local residents have been and remain the cornerstone of these efforts’ success.
The image on the left shows Al-Qutaina and its surroundings in February 2023, while the image on the right shows Al-Qutaina and its surroundings in February 2026, according to data from the Sentinel-2 satellite. Green indicates the density and health of vegetation cover based on the NDVI index. Together, the two images show a decline in vegetation cover, particularly south of the city, compared with its condition in 2023.
Hussein told Atar that over the past three years, since the outbreak of war, Sudan’s forests have faced a severe wave of illegal logging, leading to a significant reduction in forested areas, a dangerous indicator that warns of potential environmental shifts. These include disruption of tree composition, soil degradation, and cascading effects on grazing land, livestock, and agriculture, in addition to direct impacts on climate. He noted that trees once served as a natural barrier absorbing part of the gases that contribute to rising temperatures and global warming. The forestry director concluded by calling for stronger environmental awareness among citizens to preserve a healthy ecosystem and ensure the sustainability of local resources.
