Back to news
17 Mar 2015 | Air pollution solutions

Workshop to improve brick kiln policy and technologies

2 mins Read

70% Complete

A workshop on Brick Kilns Policy and Advocacy Network (PAN) was jointly organized by Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) and the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) from 18 to 20 February 2015 in Kathmandu, Nepal. The workshop sought to identify and disseminate sound practices and technologies of brick making.

Brick production is a major source of black carbon and other short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs). Asian countries account for 90% of the 1.5 trillion bricks produced every year. The workshop aimed to improve brick kiln policy by taking into account the economic, technological, environmental, and social context of each country and setting up a plan to take PAN forward. It was noted that emissions could be reduced by 10-15% by using more efficient technologies, mainly during the firing of bricks.

Speaking at the opening of the workshop, Chandra Maharjan, a Constituent Assembly member who is also a brick kiln entrepreneur, stressed the need to encourage the public to use bricks produced from cleaner kilns by introducing policies like annual home tax refunds. The workshop provided a platform for exploring effective policies and sharing experiences of implementing efficient energies in the brick sector in Asia, Latin America and Africa. Participants discussed regulatory frameworks for devising effective policies for transforming the brick-making sector in the three target regions, as well as identified experts from India, Pakistan, Vietnam, Nepal and Bangladesh willing to join the network.

About 50 participants, including brick experts, government officials, representatives of international organizations, brick kiln owners and media representatives attended the conference.

A day trip to a brick kiln in Shwet Bhairab Itta at Bhaktapur (fixed chimney zigzag kiln) and Shree Satya Narayan Brick Factory (vertical shaft brick kiln) at Imadol was also organized as part of the workshop.

The PAN Asia is being implemented by ICIMOD, and will be a key CCAC component for supporting four HKH countries – Bangladesh, Nepal, India and Pakistan – in developing comprehensive national strategies for cleaner brick production through regional consultation with stakeholders and technical experts from Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan, Vietnam, and Nepal. The consultation process will identify available and suitable regulatory frameworks to help devise effective policies and/or policy implementation approaches for transforming the Asian brick-making sector.

PAN Asia will support national stakeholders to develop national strategy and policy frameworks for each of the countries, taking into account their unique social, political, market, and resource conditions.

Further, it will identify analyse existing brick kiln technologies and identify policy gaps in each country being represented, including Nepal, Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam. It will also allow the countries to learn about the effective brick kiln policies and efficient energy initiatives that are being implemented across Asia, Latin America and Africa.

Stay current

Stay up to date on what’s happening around the HKH with our most recent publications and find out how you can help by subscribing to our mailing list.

Sign Up

related contents

Continue exploring this topic

10 Jun 2015 News
Myanmar to lead the way with ecotourism in protected areas

On 19–21 May 2015, the Government of Myanmar launched its ambitious Ecotourism Policy and Management Strategy for Protected Areas, developed ...

14 Jun 2016 Water and air
Spring Management in Darchula

At daybreak, the villagers, mostly women and children, come out carrying containers of different shapes and sizes. They walk to ...

Transboundary Cross Learning in the Kanchenjunga Landscape

To learn best practices in Kangchenjunga Landscape, India on Ecotourism (home stay programme), waste management, off-seasonal vegetable ...

15 Jun 2016 News
Payment for Ecosystem Services for Drinking Water Schemes in Dhankuta, Koshi Hills, is Becoming a Reality

After a yearlong effort through an action research by ICIMOD’s Koshi Basin Programme (KBP) and its partner Green Governance of Nepal ...

8 Apr 2016 News
Teesta Basin Visit Reveals Spring Knowledge Gaps

HI-AWARE researchers from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), The Mountain Institute-India and local organisations recently visited Santook ...

4 Feb 2016 News
No Entitlement: Living on Borrowed Flood Lands

When our HIAWARE research team visited the small Bihari village in early February, we found Chharki’s streets lined with bamboo cottages ...

25 May 2016 News
Developing Nepal’s Hydropower Potential

Significant contributions in drafting and presenting ‘Hydropower Environmental Impact Assessment Guidelines (HP-EIA) of Nepal’ to the Government of Nepal (GoN) ...