Soils and Humans

Huq, S. M. Imamul; Shoaib, Jalal Uddin Md.

doi:10.1007/978-94-007-1128-0_13

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“…In developing countries, soil degradation has been identified as the most important threat to food security (Chen 2007 ) and in Bangladesh, brick production is one of the main contributors to soil loss (Huq and Shoaib 2013 ; Khan et al 2004 ). The increasing demand for bricks in Bangladesh associated with rapid industrialization and urbanization has raised the demand for soil as a building material.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Drivers and Impacts of Selling Soil for Brick Making in Bangladesh

Biswas

Gurley

Rutherford

et al. 2018

Environmental Management

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Soil degradation is an important threat to sustainable agriculture. In Bangladesh, brick production contributes to soil loss as the country relies on clay-rich soil for brick making. An in-depth understanding of why farmers sell soil and the corresponding impacts on agricultural productivity is critical for developing and implementing new policies for utilizing alternate materials and methods in Bangladesh and other areas that continue to rely on fired clay bricks as their primary building material. A team of anthropologists conducted 120 structured interviews and 20 in-depth interviews in two different geographical areas in Bangladesh to understand the incentives for and impacts of selling soil. The primary reason farmers sold soil was pressure from neighboring farmers who had previously sold soil. Once neighboring property owners had sold soil, then farmers felt they needed to sell their soil to level their land with the neighboring plot to avoid future production loss. Short-term monetary gain from selling soil was also a strong motivator helping farmers manage acute financial crises. In addition, farmers are frequently compelled to sell soil for brick making because of coercive practices by brick-owners and their soil brokers. In this study, farmers reported 40–80% reduction in crop production and 40–70% reduction in income due to soil removal. The loss of the soil reduces agricultural yields leading to both short- and longer-term impacts on crop production that influence the country’s food security.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%