Resource information
This study's objectives are: (i) to
present the pros and cons of existing and alternative brick
technologies in Bangladesh with specific focus on pollution
and energy efficiency; (ii) to estimate the private and
social benefits of these technologies (iii) to summarize
China's experience in the development of the brick
industry, as the world leader brick producer and (iv) to
provide concrete recommendations for adopting cleaner
technologies in Bangladesh. The study focuses on the brick
cluster located in northern Dhaka, which comprises 530 Fixed
Chimney Kiln (FCKs) that produce 2.1 billion bricks annually
(14 percent of the country's brick production). As the
brick sector is a prominent contributor to air pollution in
Dhaka, it is important to distinguish its contribution to
the city's air pollution from other sources, including
transport and other industries. Because of limited data
availability, the analysis relies on the most realistic
assumptions drawn from monitored data in Bangladesh or
neighboring countries (i.e., Nepal and India). As a result,
the estimated net returns for each technology are orders of
magnitude rather than precise estimates. This report
analysis the brick sector in Bangladesh and assesses the
feasibility of cleaner alternative technologies.