Brick Kilns and One Health: Impacts on Soil, Plant Animal Systems

Environmental pollution arising from rapid industrialization poses serious risks to human, animal and ecosystem health, with heavy metals representing one of the most persistent and hazardous contaminants due to their bio-accumulative nature. Brick kilns, a widespread and largely unorganized industry in the UT of Jammu & Kashmir, emit particulate matter, toxic gases and heavy metals that enter the soil-plant-animal continuum, ultimately contaminating the food chain. This book examines brick kilns as chronic environmental stressors through a One Health lens, assessing their influence on soil quality, fodder crops, dairy cattle health and milk safety. Using a comparative field-based approach, environmental and biological samples from kiln-affected areas and matched control sites were analyzed for lead, cadmium, chromium and essential trace elements like iron, copper and zinc. Elevated levels of lead and chromium were detected in soils, plant materials and cow milk near brick kilns, with milk concentrations exceeding permissible limits and posing significant public health concerns. While overt disease patterns were limited, reproductive inefficiency and mineral imbalances were evident

Pagina's: 72, Paperback, LAP LAMBERT Academic Publishing