Masonry Magazine February 2012 Page. 38
SUSTAINABILITY
for agriculture without adding fertilizers and supplements. Most brick plants use material from the same pit extracted through multiple soil layers for at least 50 years, thus minimizing the impact to the surface area. Conveyors and other power equipment typically are used to transport the clay from the mine to the plant. Storm water runoff from clay pits is controlled by regulations from the Mining Safety and Health Act. Manufacturers typically use settling ponds, filtration and catch basins to limit suspended solids. Dust is controlled by spraying organic, biodegradable oils or water.
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Additionally, nearly all of the mined, raw materials result in finished brick product. More than 95 percent of all the mined clay and shale goes to the plant, and an average of only 3.5 percent of the manufactured product ends up as scrap, most of which is returned to the manufacturing process. Once a pit's material production has subsided, mined areas are reclaimed for future use by replacing overburden and topsoil, so the resulting property can be used for a wide variety of functions. In this way, valuable clay and shale resources are obtained, while allowing for land to be reused for a different purpose later.
Several brick manufacturers use fuels of bio-based materials from other industrial applications and waste products. Sawdust from furniture manufacturing is used in several plants in the Southeast. Methane gas collected from landfills now fires brick manufacturing in five plants. Petroleum coke - remains from oil refining- is used by one manufacturer.
Lower embodied energy
THE AVERAGE AMOUNT of energy to extract raw materials and manufacture and deliver bricks has decreased significantly. Circa 1970, around 4,000 Btu per pound of bricks was required. The current industry average is about 1,240 Btu per pound. When considered with the intrinsic durability present in bricks, which will last for more than a century, the environmental impact is lower, due to its distribution during a long life.
No CFCs, HCFCs, toxic compounds, toxic by-products
BRICKS ARE MADE from the non-organic minerals mentioned earlier. As such, they do not contain carbon-based materials. Bricks do not contain highly toxic compounds. Tests to evaluate the encapsulation of potentially damaging chemicals in waste materials have shown that no toxic compounds are leached from bricks. A brick is a 100 percent inorganic, inert material. Firing bricks with natural gas or coal will produce some emissions, which are well documented and controlled by state and national regulations. The brick industry recognizes the need for compliance with these regulations for clean air and the environment. Air emissions are minimized with controls such as scrubbers installed on kiln exhausts.
Lime waste that accumulates in scrubbers often is recycled as a beneficial additive to soil. Dust in brick plants is controlled through the use of filtering and containment systems, vacuums, additives and water mists. Even vehicular emissions are being addressed, with brick manufacturers monitoring truck emissions, recycling waste oil, antifreeze and hydraulic oil; and regulating truck speeds for improved fuel efficiency.
Local raw materials, manufacturing
MOST BRICKS ARE MANUFACTURED from materials obtained from within a few miles of the manufacturing plant. The average distance that raw materials travel to a plant is 15 miles. Brick manufacturing facilities are located in 38 states across the country and close to urban areas. In the 50 largest metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in the United States, more than 25 plants exist within 500 miles of each, and at least two