Brick kilns flout new regulations
Many of the brick makers are refusing to abandon traditional kilns because of the low availability of brick making raw materials
Prof Sarwar Md Saifullah Khaled
It has been observed after six months of the deadline set by the government, that nearly 90 percent of the brick-makers have not updated their production process in keeping with new environmental regulations on the fuel, location and use of brick kilns. The Bangladesh Environment Ministry says that a total of 6,637 traditional and modern brickfields are currently operating in the country. A report by the Bangladesh Centre for Advance Studies (BCAS) says that only 735 of these brickfields follow the new regulations. The environment ministry says that about 63 percent of brickfields have met the modern kiln regulation. The brick business owners say that the remaining traditional kilns will gradually be phased out to meet the environmental regulations.
But many of the countrys brickfield owners have also begun questioning the regulations. The brick business owners say that though older kilns are being converted, they are not given permission to go with the business because they cannot observe every regulation. Brickfield owners warned that one million workers may go out of work if the regulations are observed strictly. The BCAS Executive Director told that the brick-makers were given time until Jun 30, 2016 to replace the traditional kilns with modern ones. He said that Our research says 88.65 percent of brickfields have not obeyed the law. It is illegal for children to work in the brickfields but there are child labourers who are making a living at a brick kiln.
As per BCAS statistics, 1,745 of the brickfields in Bangladesh started operations before obtaining a license. Though the government has regulated the use of modern kilns to combat air and environmental pollution, brick-makers have been reluctant to phase out the older kilns because of profit concerns. According to BCAS statistics 17.12 billion bricks are manufactured every year in Bangladesh. The amount of earth required for it stands to about 58.38 billion tons. Wood or coal is used to fuel the traditional brick kilns. The height of the permanent chimneys used is, at most, 120 feet. Bricks in the country are made during six months in a year November to April. The smoke released from these chimneys damages the ozone layer and pollutes the surrounding areas of the brickfields.
The government instituted the Brick Making and Brickfield Establishment (Control) Act 2013, after demands from environmental activists, banning permanent chimney brickfields. At a Green Brick Convention arranged by businesses, the countrys Finance Minister encouraged brick-makers to take advantage of their duty-free facility and convert older brick kilns to modern ones. On the other hand, the owners complained that simply replacing the traditional kilns was not enough to satisfy regulators. The regulation concerning the position of kilns would deny them permissions, even if they converted them, the owners said.
Many of the brick makers are refusing to abandon traditional kilns because of the low availability of brick making raw materials. A brickfield owner stated that brickfields in Khulna, Noakhali, Lakshmipur and many other areas of the country have yet to move away from traditional kilns.
He said that permanent chimneys are especially being used in areas where wood is widely available. But he, who is also the Senior Secretary of the Bangladesh Brick Manufacturing Owners Association, says he doubts the numbers reported by BCAS is correct. He said that I believe the report has relied on faulty sources to come up with the 88 percent figure. Most brickfields in the Comilla, Chandpur and Narayanganj areas have already converted. The associations Vice President also expressed his dismay at the strictness of the new regulations. He said it is impossible to follow the regulations on transportation and location and run a successful brick business ground. He said that Why 88 percent? I would have thought 99 percent of brickfields would become illegal.
The proprietor of the ARB Enterprise brickfield in Dhamrai of Dhaka district says legal restrictions have prevented him from taking advantage of available protection. He said that We have taken steps to build Zigzag kilns for six years, but because of new regulations from the environment ministry, we have not been granted protection. This has created a production slowdown. He also expressed concern about the public loans granted for the construction of modern kilns. In order to pay the interest on the Tk. 550 million loans, Rangpur Naz Auto Bricks would have to produce 120,000 bricks a day. Do you think more than 100,000 bricks can be sold in an area like Rangpur? he asked.
The brickfield owners say demand for bricks of late is increasing because of increasing construction works in Bangladesh. Nearly Tk 25 billion worth of bricks has to be imported in a year to meet the increasing demand. The owners say that Bangladesh could meet the demand itself if restrictions were relaxed. Environment ministry Director General said that it is because of the existing situation that permits and protections are not being granted. However, he did question the BCAS report that blamed 90 percent of the brickfields for non-compliance. He said that I do not know what sources environmental activists are using for their report, but it is incorrect. According to the environment ministrys calculations, almost 63 percent of factories have already adopted modern methods. Legal action would be taken against those who were yet to comply, he said. He also said that Recently seven brickfields have been demolished in the Khulna area. Environmental mobile courts are operating in Barisal and Patuakhali.
Currently 700 other brickfields are continuing operations in the country after challenging the government order at the High Court. The environment department says there is nothing to do about those fields for the time being so they continue in their own fashion of making bricks in the country violating necessary regulations. Adequate quick measures needs to be taken so that all the brickfields of the country obey the brick making new regulations to save their surrounding environments from pollution.
The writer is a retired Professor of Economics
