Vietnam Shows Way with Energy-Efficient Vertical Shaft Brick Kilns
BANGKOK, THAILAND, November 14, 2008: Vietnam is showing the way in replacing highly polluting brick kilns with more energy efficient and far less polluting kilns.
In the past two years alone, Vietnam has succeeded in encouraging many brick kiln operators to shift to the energy efficient vertical shaft brick kiln (VSBK) from the polluting Bull’s trench kiln (BTK) even though the vertical shaft model is two to three times more expensive to build.
Nepal is eager to follow Vietnam’s example, for it has only seven vertical shaft brick kilns in operation compared to Vietnam’s 200.
Nepal’s VSBK program coordinator, Suyesh Prajapati, says he knows where the country went wrong. “Now we’re going in the right direction to clean up our brick kiln industry,” he said in an interview at the Better Air Quality (BAQ) 2008 workshop in Bangkok.
When the VSBK was introduced in Nepal in the 1990s, local entrepreneurs were slow to see the long term benefits. They were discouraged by the new technology’s high cost. It didn’t help, either, that there was a lack of experts to familiarize them with the new technology.
“Promoting any energy efficient measure is always difficult in the beginning,” says Mr. Prajapati. “This is mainly because of the high initial investment. People want to reap the benefits of their investment as soon as possible.”
In Vietnam, however, it was a different story. “People realized more quickly the long term economic benefits that came from saving fuel,” he said.
The VSBK consumes 30% to 35% less energy than the BTK. Another big advantage is that the VSBK can operate at any time of the year whereas the BTK can operate only during the dry season. Furthermore, the VSBK needs 24-28 hours to dry the bricks, compared to the BTK’s 15 days.
The vertical shaft brick kiln represents a marked improvement in an industry that is highly polluting. Brick kilns accounts for 34% of air pollution in Kathmandu, 30% in Dhaka, and 19% in Peshawar.
But if 120,000 brick kilns shift to the VSBK, studies estimate this would save almost 72 million tons of carbon dioxide annually. The VSBK also emits 60% to 90% less particulate matter than the BTK.
Reducing pollution means better health for the residents in brick making communities. In Kathmandu, for instance, poor air quality is believed to cause around 1,600 premature deaths yearly.
World Bank environment specialist Shakil Ahmed Ferdausi underscores the importance of planning before governments encourage entrepreneurs to shift to VSBK. “If we do it too quickly, it will bring bad results,” he says. “There should be a feasibility study, technical designing, construction supervision, and trouble shooting.”
One drawback of the VSBK is that, unlike the BTK, it works only with good quality soil. This means the VSBK cannot be recommended for all areas in South Asia. “In some areas, good quality soil is not a problem. In some areas, it is,” notes Mr. Ferdausi.
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By Carmela Fonbuena, media@cai-asia.org
