Fuelwood contributes 19% of the energy supply of lower-income countries, and 3% of the energy consumed in high-income countries.
In the Pokhara area of Nepal, wood energy comes mainly from fuelwood, charcoal, sawdust and bamboo harvested in surrounding areas, but also from lowland regions and roadside fuelwood sellers in fuelwood sufficient areas. The distribution involves mainly producers (villagers) to consumers (townspeople), through one to three levels of middlemen in between. Some producers illegally harvest government or community forests; most are lower caste poor and landless people, trying to earn a living during the non-agricultural season (September-May). While many urban householders have shifted to fossil fuels, certain industries still rely on charcoal and wood from the forest. The depletion of sal Shorea robusta, khair Acacia catechu and kaphal Myrica esculanta threatens the forests. Producers retain a rich working knowledge of forest resources, which has potential payoffs for more sustainable and equitable forest resource policy.
In 1999, the European Union aimed to produce energy by burning the waste generated by the wood-processing industries. These industries could reduce pollution levels and introduce clean production methods over the entire production chain, from the tree to the finished product.