Assessment of Brick Kilns Induced Air Pollution: A Micro-Regional Approach

Kaniz Fatema, Md Rahedul Islam*, Miss Sukhi Khatun3

Abstract

Brick kilns in Bangladesh significantly contribute to poor air quality due to their hazardous emissions, resulting in severe health impacts on local communities, contributing to climate change, and adversely affecting agriculturalproductivity. Theprimary aimof thisresearch wasto identify areaswith high brick kiln density and assess variations in pollution concentrations in and around these kilns. The methodology adopted both primary and secondary data collection, analysis, and representation. For data collection, the MCD19A2 MODIS product was utilized to calculate the mean density of Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD), in addition to direct field observations using an instrument called the Intelligent Air Detector and conducting Key Informant Interviews (KII) in March 2024. The results indicated that the averageAODin thestudy arearanged from0.4590 to 0.8723. Higher valueswereobserved in thecentral and northeastern regions, suggesting a significant presence of aerosols, particularly in areas with a high density of brick kilns. Pollutant levels were found to be high within 50 meters of all the kilns, decreasing as the distance from the kilns increased. A moderate to strong positive correlation (PM2.5 with PM10: r=0.935, p<0.01; PM1.0 with PM2.5: r=0.815, p<0.01; PM1.0 with PM10: r=0.675, p<0.05) indicated that the kilns were hotspots for pollutants. Yearly emission estimates for various pollutants were calculated using local emission factors, revealing high emissions from these kilns owing to their use of outdated technology. The findings of this study are expected to help reinforce regulations and policy-making based on the data provided regarding serious pollution scenarios in the study area.

Keywords: Air Pollutants, Polluted Areas, High Brick Kilns Density, AOD, Emission

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