With the acknowledged fact that Bangladesh is at the sharp end of climate change impact, a general understanding is that the more we adopt greener options the better. Keeping this in mind, the housing and public works minister recently addressed the media and said that in order to reduce top soil usage, emphasis needs to be given to the use of sand cement locks in construction.

The problem with bricks is twofold. Firstly, there is valid concern about the ecological devastation caused by traditional brick kilns and, secondly, bricks made from top soil adversely impact fertility. Though there is a guideline for making kilns eco-friendly, diverting to another form of solid substance, in this case, sand cement blocks, is the wise alternative. In fact, in Bangladesh, which is seeing construction boom in all major cities and suburban towns, green building guideline must be made mandatory with eco-friendly construction ideas propagated through regular real estate related exhibitions.

While there is talk about sand cement blocks, other less expensive and easily available environmentally friendly options can also be explored. In this case,

Bangladesh can seek the support from other countries which have made green building obligatory. In leading cities in our country, construction in the last one decade has been relentless with little attention given to the environment factor. Consequently, ponds have been filled, open spaces occupied, parks turned to colonies and trees cut off. The overall impact is the creation of a claustrophobic urban forest where green is often absent. On the construction side, reliance on bricks has turned large swathes of land into barren fields, making the entire urbanization a cycle of inescapable environmental degradation.

Just switching to sand cement blocks in not the answer here; the whole construction process needs to undergo a transformation buffeted by a mass ecological awareness. The government can start taking the lead, mentioning specifically on each new construction, the list of pro environmental measures adopted so this can work as a guide for others. In addition, in association with environment work related development agencies, the government can introduce a green prize to be awarded to real estate companies that follow a comprehensive eco- friendly guide, with the provision for tax rebates when the real estate project covers several large buildings. The major hurdle is to change people’s mind from an item used for decades to something which is completely new. In this case, a cohesive sensitizing campaign with help from NGO’s can be evaluated.