Despite the availability of clean technology, the majority of the 1,500 billion bricks used each year are produced using polluting kilns.
Traditional brick production methods, in which clay bricks are fired using coal, wood or other biomass materials, are still commonly found in parts of Asia and Latin America. These methods are inefficient, requiring a lot of energy and top soil, and pose an important threat to health and the environment through the large amounts of particulate matter, black carbon, sulphur dioxide, carbon dioxide, and other pollutants they release into the atmosphere.
The mitigation potential in the sector is significant, with recent estimates showing that switching to more efficient technologies, mainly during brick firing, can reduce pollutant emissions by more than 90% (IIASA GAINS, 2017), depending on the process, scale, and fuel used. These technologies would also bring additional social and economic benefits to brick producers and their communities, including safer working conditions, increased productivity, and improved agricultural yield.
Cleaning up traditional brick production methods requires regional and international coordination as well as greater awareness about the challenges specific to the sector. In 2012, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition launched its Bricks Initiative to support the modernisation of the brick sector, making kilns cleaner and more sustainable, while contributing to local economic development, improved health, and better working conditions.
Coalition partners are working to:
The Coalition’s Bricks Initiative is the only initiative of brick producers, experts, and public policy officials working together to reduce contamination from traditional brick production with the co-benefits of improved health, social, economic and labour conditions, reduced informality, and a general increase in the quality of life for workers and local communities residing at or near traditional brick kilns.
To achieve its objectives, the initiative provides:
The initiative has produced knowledge tools, pulicy guidance tools, brick kiln emission and efficiency standard protocols, and economic analyses to support a transition toward cleaner brick production.
5-year milestones:
Over the last year, the Coalition has increased high-level engagement and developed a robust framework for a multiple benefits pathway approach. Key results from our 11 initiatives are reflected...
This document presents results from the Climate & Clean Air Coalition’s Bricks Initiative reported between July 2016 and June 2017. These results were recorded using the Demonstrating...
Lead Partner: A Coalition partner with an active role in coordinating, monitoring and guiding the work of an initiative.
Implementer: A Coalition partner or actor receiving Coalition funds to implement an activity or initiative.
Brick production is one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases (GHG) and short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) in Bangladesh. The informal brick sector is the main contributor of this...
This report describes the general overview of tunnel kiln technology and presents the brick making process, design elements of tunnel kiln and key technical aspects of its different components and...
Details on the event agenda and programme structure for the one-day workshop taking place in Dhaka, Bangladesh on 23 July, 2019.
Declaración emitida por el Congreso Nacional Comisión Nacional de Defensa de los Recursos Naturales de Paraguay por la cual se declara de interés nacional la formalización del sector ladrillero...
Within the framework of the Brick Initiative of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), and the activities of the Public Policy Network of Latin America for the Clean Production of Bricks (PAN...
Within the framework of the Brick Initiative of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC), and of the activities of the Public Policy Network of Latin America for the Clean Production of Bricks (...
The adopted State Environmental Standard NAE-SEMADET-002/2018 establishes the technical criteria and specifications for the location, and operation of ceramic producing units in the State of...