Eco-friendly brick kilns fetch foreign currency

The country's first environment friendly CDM project in the brick kiln industry with Hybrid Hoffman Kiln (HHK) technology has fetched carbon revenue of US$ 264,525 for reduction of 17,403 tonnes of greenhouse gas emission during the crediting period of 2011-12. The CDM Executive Board of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has approved issuance of CERs in favour of Industrial and Infrastructure Development Finance Company Limited (IIDFC) on February 21. With this issuance, the company has become the first local financial institution to earn carbon revenue in the country for the energy efficient kiln owners, says a press statement.

IIDFC entered into Emission Reductions Purchase Agreements (ERPA) with the World Bank and the Danish Government on August 25, 2009, to sell CERs to be generated from new energy efficient and environment friendly brick kilns under this project. The project is expected to generate further Carbon Credits until FY 2021 and fetch more foreign exchange for the country. The project was also awarded the "HSBC-Daily Star Climate Award 2010" as the best project under mitigation category.

Apart from reducing greenhouse gas emission, the project is promoting sustainable changes in the brick making industry by introducing an environmental management framework and strong occupational health and safety standards, which are totally non-existent in the traditional kilns, i.e., Fixed Chimney Kilns (FCKs). The project has also generated round the year jobs for the local workers who now work under a highly monitored safe and hygienic environment.

This particular project of IIDFC has encouraged many entrepreneurs to implement environment friendly brick kilns, i.e., HHK, Tunnel kiln etc., which are significantly more energy efficient and less polluting as compared to the traditional FCKs.