JSFA
Can Emissions from Coal-fired Brick Kilns in India Harm Agricultural Crops?
TOTAL VIEWS: 520
Abstract
In India, there are over 140,000 coal-fired brick kilns operating on the outskirts of rural and urban settlements. Many of these brick kilns operate on or near agricultural land where farmers cultivate. Emissions from these brick kilns not only harm the health of humans and animals, but also have the potential to harm or destroy agricultural crops on a large scale. In fact, emissions from these coal-fired brick kilns contain several fluoride-containing toxic gases, such as HF, SiF4, and CF4. This contaminates not only agricultural and horticultural crops, but also soil and various perennial freshwater sources, such as ponds, lakes, dams, and rivers, which pose potential fluoride risks not only to humans and animals, but also to various agricultural crops. However, most farmers in India remain unaware of the toxic effects of fluoride-containing emissions on various crops. When crops are exposed to these emissions, fluoride enters crop plants primarily through leaf stomata. However, it can also enter through the roots. Fluoride bio-accumulation in crop plants ultimately affects their morphology, physiology, and various biochemical parameters. In fact, fluoride adversely affects vital biological processes in crop plants, such as photosynthesis, respiration, mineral nutrition, fertilization, germination, and growth and development. Due to this, there is a huge decrease in agricultural productivity, due to which farmers suffering huge financial losses. The most common visible pathognomonic symptoms of industrial fluoride toxicity in crop plants are stunted growth, chlorosis, necrosis, abscission of leaves, flowers, and fruits, and reduction in seed production. Consumption of food grains and fodder contaminated with fluoride can cause fluorosis in humans and animals, respectively. In the present review, the focus is on various toxic effects on agricultural crops due to emissions from coal-based brick kilns, so as to draw the attention of the concerned departmental authorities towards resolving this grave problem of agriculture in the country.
Keywords
Agricultural crops; Bio-accumulation; Brick kilns; Coals; Economic loss; Emission; Fluoride; Toxicity effects
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How to cite this paper
Can Emissions from Coal-fired Brick Kilns in India Harm Agricultural Crops?
How to cite this paper: Shanti Lal Choubisa. (2025) Can Emissions from Coal-fired Brick Kilns in India Harm Agricultural Crops? International Journal of Food Science and Agriculture, 9(4), 266-271.
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.26855/ijfsa.2025.12.002
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