A survey, in the form of a questionnaire, of energy consumption patterns in residential households in the rural fringe of Man city was undertaken during the winter of 2003/2004. More than 200 households were sampled during the survey. The status of fuel consumption, including the use of biomass fuels for cooking and space heating, was investigated. The types of stoves, purpose of the stove use, and characteristics of the residential houses and residents were also reported and analyzed. The purpose of the survey was to clarify the status of energy consumption and to estimate emissions of greenhouse gases and air pollutants in rural areas of China, from the environmental perspective of climate change and indoor to continental scale air pollution. In rural areas of China, biomass (wood and agricultural waste, such as stalks, corn canes and twigs, branches of wood) is the type of fuel most commonly used. It emits several air pollutants: particulate matter (PM), CO, NMHCs, CH4 and high levels of black carbon (BC) - a greenhouse effect aerosol, and organic carbon (OC) - a cooling effect aerosol. However, CO2 emissions from biomass burning are assumed to be zero because of carbon neutrality. From this survey it would then be possible to analyze the fundamentals of emission reduction potential, for air pollutants and greenhouse gases, from the rural household sector in China. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.