Brick kiln operating on cropland for years

A brick field on cropland, adjacent to an educational institution in Gafargaon upazila of Mymensingh, has become a threat to locals as well as to the environment.

Locals alleged that MBB Bricks, set up on four acres of cropland near the Shila river in Chamurtha village, has been operating illegally for four years, but the authorities concerned are yet to take any action. Around 400 maunds of logs are being burned at the brick field daily and black smoke emitted from it is affecting the villager's health as well as local agriculture and vegetation.

On November 21, a team from the Department of Environment (DoE) in Mymensingh asked its owner, Mohammad Habibullah, to shut it down, but he resumed the brick field three days later, they also said.

AKM Nuruzzaman, principal of Shamsul Haque Fazil Madrasa near the brick field, said the madrasa is within 100 metres of the brick kiln and the students experience difficulty breathing when the kiln spews out ashes and thick black smoke.

It is a serious nuisance for the students, teachers and over 1,200 inhabitants of the village, but there is no remedy to it, he said frustratingly. 

When asked about the impact of such a brick kiln on agriculture, Mohammad Motiuzzaman, deputy director of Department of Agricultural Extension in Mymensingh, said no crop, vegetable or fruit will grow properly if a brick field in the vicinity continuously emits harmful smoke and ashes.

Although the brick field owner, Mohammad Habibullah, admitted that he did not obtain any licence or any certificate from the DoE, he claimed that he has been conducting the business since 2017, with verbal 'permission' from several DoE officials and the 'permission' is applicable till this season.

Primarily coal along with a minimal amount of wood is used as fuel in the kiln, he also claimed.

Mohammad Shahabuddin Khan, chairman of Niguari Union Parishad, said the authorities concerned conduct raids against such illegal brick kilns, but for unknown reasons, the illegal establishments continue to operate in the area, causing harm to residents as well as the environment.

Contacted, Gafargaon Upazila Nirbahi Officer Tajul Islam said no brick field violating applicable laws would be allowed in the upazila and they would soon conduct drives against illegal brick fields.

Farid Ahmed, divisional director of DoE, said the owner of MBB Bricks never even submitted any application for permission from the DoE.

Since the owner did not pay heed to their order of stopping its operations, the DoE would take stern action against him to protect villagers and the environment from the harm of the brick field, he also said.2