The government has organised a convention in Dhaka today to promote the making and use of eco-friendly bricks in Bangladesh.

The government stopped issuing licences for old-style brick kilns in 2015, but brick makers have still shown little interest in producing eco-friendly bricks.

Environmentalist Dr Atiq Rahman says using eco-friendly bricks will not only protect the environment but also greatly reduce health risks for people.

The government is running a campaign to replace bricks from conventional kilns with eco-friendly bricks. To mark it, the state-run Bangladesh Infrastructure Finance Fund Limited has organised a convention on Sunday called "Green Brick Convention 2016".

Under the law, the government has stopped licensing old-technology kilns and plans to close existing old kilns in phases. Environmentalists say conventional kilns use topsoil, which also damages the fertility of the land.

Kiln owners, however, have so far shown little interest in adopting the new technology.

"If an ordinary brick kiln costs Tk 1 crore, these kilns will cost Tk 40 to 50 crore. The government is arranging low-interest loans for owners for this," said Dr Atiq Rahman, who is to present the keynote paper at the Green Brick convention.

The convention mainly aims to get kiln owners interested in making eco-friendly bricks and to make them aware of the loans available. Dr Rahman said eco-friendly bricks will not increase the cost of construction.

Source: BBC Bangla. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.