PCDD/F, PCB and HCB Emissions from Brick Making in Develping Countries - A Case Study from Mexico

Brick making in emerging and developing countries, using simple technologies without any abatement of emissions in place, is a sector that particularly gains importance when economies start to grow, with subsequently rising demands for construction materials. Traditionally, bricks are made using virgin biomass as a fuel. Apart from the overuse of resources in the vicinity of the kilns, the lack of traditional combustion material leads to the uncontrolled use of alternative fuels, often high caloric waste such as plastic material, waste oils etc. Consequently the releases of hazardous compounds may become an issue. Apart from that occupational health and - since the production sites are often part of settlement areas ¿ public health may be concerned. We present first results from a field campaign determining the emission of PCDD/Fs, dioxin- like PCBs and Hexachlorobenzene from brick production to air, ashes and bricks. The measurements were carried out in Mexico, in the province of Guanajuato, on kilns typically used in developing countries. In the State of Guanajuato there are 2170 brick kilns of that type registered. To investigate the influence of fuel, the selection comprised one kiln operated with traditional fuel (untreated wood trunks), the other one with waste- derived fuel (¿ Combustóleo¿, a type of heavy oil). The experiments were carried out in co-operation between the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission (JRC), who coordinated the project and analysed emission and ash samples, and the Centro Nacional de Investigación y Capacitación Ambiental (CENICA), Instituto Nacional de Ecología (INE), Mexico, who coordinated the field campaigns as part of a main project to evaluate the impact of artisanal brick kiln production1. The data on PCDD/Fs, dioxin- like PCBs and Hexachlorobenzene in bricks were contributed from Krakow University. Gamatek (subcontracted by CENICA) executed the sampling of PCDD/Fs , dioxin- like PCBs and Hexachlorobenzene emissions, determined the content of CO2, CO and CH4 in the flue gas, and calculated the emission factors to air. The emission factors to waste (ashes) and products (bricks) were calculated by the JRC. The present study is part of an ongoing study on brick production issued by the Expert Group for the further Development of the Standardized Toolkit for the Identification and Quantification of Dioxin and Furan Releases2, hosted by the Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention/UNEP.JRC.DDG.H.5-Rural, water and ecosystem resource