Kilns running with movable instead of fixed chimneys will no longer be allowed to manufacture bricks outside the Kathmandu Valley as well from November 28, acccording to the Ministry of Environment (MoE). [break]
"Brick kilns using movable chimneys emit smoke filled with more suspended particulate matters, even higher than the maximum limit fixed by the government, compared to kilns with fixed chimneys," says Surendra Subedi, senior divisional engineer at the MoE, explaining the rationale for imposing a ban on such brick kilns.
The government has fixed 700 mg/Nm3 as the maximum limit of suspended particulate matters in smoke emitted by brick kilns. However, brick kilns with movable chimneys emit smoke filled with from 1,000 to 1,200 mg/Nm3 suspended particulate matters, which environment experts say cause serious air pollution.
"Brick kilns with fixed chimneys can reduce the level of suspended particulate matters by adopting certain measures," Subedi says. "But, it is almost impossible for brick kilns using movable chimneys to reduce the concentration of suspended hazardous particles in their smoke. This is why a blanket ban on such kilns is necessary."
Previously, the government had banned such brick kilns inside the Kathmandu Valley in 2003. Today, only those brick kilns with fixed chimneys are allowed inside the Valley.
"We have been regularly examining the level of hazardous particles in smoke emitted by brick kilns in and outside the valley every year. We have not found the concentration of hazardous particles in smoke emitted by brick kilns with fixed chimneys more than the limit," Subedi says. "In our latest examination, we found only one brick kiln with fixed chimney emitting smoke with more suspended particles than the maximum limit. We have written to Department of Industry (DoI) to take necessary action against that brick kiln."
The decision to ban brick kilns using movable chimneys outside the valley was taken by Industrial Promotion Board (IPB) two years ago. The decision is coming into effect in less than three weeks from now.
"We will remind all brick kiln operators of our two-year-old decision," says Dhundi Pokharel, the director general of the DoI, which functions as the secretariat of the IPB with industry minister as chairperson. "If they fail to stop manufacturing bricks by using movable chimneys, we will shut their factories," Pokharel says.
Even as the government gears up to implement its decision, most of the brick kilns using movable chimneys outside the valley have yet not made any plan to opt for fixed chimneys. "Movable chimneys are not only hazardous to environment but also harmful for kiln workers," Arjun Thapa, a former brick kiln operator, says. "Several workers are killed and injured while trying to shift movable chimneys."
Why do most of brick kiln operators use movable chimneys despite their so many drawbacks? "They are cheaper," Thapa says. "Fixed chimneys cost almost four times more than movable chimneys."
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