In the Han Dynasty (BC206-220AD) that followed appeared tile, another building material made of clay. People called them Qin Bricks and Han Tiles.

Although they have supported countless houses for more than 20 centuries, "Qin Bricks and Han Tiles" are to be moved into historical museums at the turn of the century, a brave step the Chinese people, who can no longer stand up with the damage to farmland damage and air pollution resulting from the making of the bricks and tiles, will take to protect the environment.

To cater for the needs for expanding urban construction since the 1980s, numerous brick and tile producers have been working on more than 300,000 hectares of farmland to make bricks and tiles.

It has been proven that the production of bricks and tiles wastes a lot of coal. Statistics show that coal consumption accounts for over 70 percent of China's annual energy consumption, and that one-fourth of the coal is used to make bricks and tiles.

Meanwhile, plenty of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide produced in the process of making bricks and tiles creates serious air pollution.

Therefore, it has become an urgent task to ban the use of Qin Bricks and Han Tiles in order to protect limited land resources and protect the environment. And the Chinese government started to put strict restrictions on the use of farmland for setting up kilns since 1998.

The government also requires enterprises to develop new building materials as substitutes for traditional bricks and tiles.

Beginning June 1, 2000, traditional bricks and tiles were banned in new buildings in all municipalities, large and mid-sized cities in coastal areas, and cities in the province where per capita farmland is less than 0.053 hectares.

The Ministry of Construction, the State Economic and Trade Commission and the State Administration of Building Materials Industry have ordered the clay bricks be banned completely after June 31, 2003. Restriction shall also be gradually imposed on the production and use of other products made of clay.

Xi Yitian, chief engineer of building materials company in Hebei Province, north China, demonstrated a new building material made of waste mainly from power plants, which is light but is strong and dependable.

Xi said using the new product to replace traditional bricks and tiles will not only save land resources and reduce pollution, but also recycle waste residue.

According to the Ministry of Construction, more than 20 kinds of energy-saving building materials have been developed, and at present 35 percent of the newly urban buildings across the country use new building materials, compared with five percent 10 years ago.

The Chinese government, at the same time, also encourages farmers in developed rural areas to use new building materials in their new dwelling.

"Their experience will be spread to other rural areas," said Chen Xiaoyu, a senior engineer with the Ministry of Construction.

"I believe Qin Bricks and Han Tiles won't be seen in new buildings across the country. The Chinese people will have a bluer sky and greener ground."

(Xinhua 12/29/2000)