1. A global issue posing human health and environmental threats
E-waste
A global issue posing human health and environmental threats

2. Defining E-waste Waste electrical and electronic equipment
Any electronic equipment that has been discarded or is at the end of its life-cycle
televisions
computers
cell phones
kitchen appliances

3. The Problem
Electronic waste constantly being dumped by developed countries on developing countries, causing health and environmental effects
Developing countries lack:
Strict government legislation regarding e-waste
Extended producer responsibility
Safe e-waste management
Developed countries lack:
consumer awareness
the will to comply with international treaties

4. E-waste Trade
Recyclers from U.S. send shipments to China, West Africa, India
Middlemen smuggle, distribute e-waste
Small recycle businesses in “e-waste villages”
Disassembled, harvest valuable parts

5. E-Waste Trade
E-waste from corporate consumers and households enters a city specific informal e-waste recycling system. Collection and allocation of e-waste done by middlemen and scrap dealers. Includes acceptable processes such as dismantling and sorting but also very harmful processes such as burning and leaching in order to extract metals from electronic equipment.
E-waste from corporate consumers and households enters a city specific informal e-waste recycling system. Collection and allocation of e-waste is done by middlemen, scrap dealers. The informal recycling system includes acceptable processes such as dismantling and sorting but also very harmful processes such as burning and leaching in order to extract metals from electronic equipment.

6. E-waste Disassembly Manual dismantling Metal recovery:
Gold
Silver
Copper
Sell secondary raw metals to smelting plants
Non-valuable scraps to:
Scrap plies
Open burn site
Incineration plant

7. Metal Recovery from Cables

8. "We saw people using e-waste to fill in swamps…whenever the piles got too high, they would torch them," (Schmitd)

9. Chemical Exposure When these are burned, dioxin and PCB’s are released
Most common elements in electronics are Lead, Cadmium, Phosphorous
When these are burned, dioxin and PCB’s are released
The workers, wearing no protective gear, inhale, ingest, directly contact these toxins, receiving chronic exposure to these persistent organic pollutants

10. Health Effects Chronic low level exposure to dioxin leads to impaired:
Endocrine system
Reproductive system
Immune system
Cancer
Hormone disruption
Acute high-level exposure results in:
Skin lesions
Liver damage
Chronic exposure to dioxin leads to impaired function of the endocrine, reproductive, and immune systems as well as increased risk of cancer and hormone disruption. Acute high-level exposure of dioxin, on the other hand, may cause skin lesions as well as altered liver function

11. Guiyu, China e-waste recycling village in southern china
Guiyu receives …tons of e-waste each year
In Guiyu, pregnancies are six times more likely to end in miscarriages
Seven out of ten children have higher than acceptable concentrations of lead in their blood

12. Environmental Effects
Trace metals in e-waste contaminate the environment by leaching into groundwater and soilsediment, disrupting ecosystems.
Guiyu, China:
Scientists from the University of Hong Kong sampled sediment from Lianjiang River to quantify trace metal composition and pH level.
Results: in addition to being oxygen-depleted, soil had an acidic pH of 6.3 and contained significant amounts of persistent organic pollutants

13. POP’s in the Environment: Indirect human exposure
Resist natural decay, accumulate in the environment, store in animal body fat
Contaminated rivers=contaminated fish
People exposed to POP’s through secondary exposure via fish consumption
Contaminated irrigation=contaminated food crops

14. Solutions
Implement stricter laws, increased pressure on countries that do not abide
”Extended producer responsibilities”
manufacturer's responsibilities for a product are extended to the products final treatment and disposal
Raise awareness among consumers

15. References EMPA. Swiss e-waste. http://india.ewasteguide.info/Initial
Wong, Coby S.C. Trace metal contamination of sediments in an e-waste processing village in China. Environmental Pollution. Volume 145, issue 2. January Pg
Hodgson, Ernest and Patricia E Levi. "A Textbook of Modern Toxicology". Second Edition Stamford, Connecticut. Pg
World Health Organization. "Dioxins and their Effects on Human Health". November 2007.
Colborn, Theo, Dianne Dumanoski, and John Peterson Meyers. Our Stolen Future. March, 1997, Penguin Group: New York.
EMPA. Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research. E-waster: Swiss e-waste guide. Retrieved November 2008 from
Osibanjo, O. and Nnorom, I.C. "The challenge of e-waste management in developing countries". Sage Publications. Waste Management Research 2007; 25; 489.
Schmitd, Charles. Unfair trade e-waste in Africa. Environmental Health Perspectives. V. 114: 4, pg April 2006.
Pelley, Scott. CBS Interactive Inc. 60 Minutes. "The electronic wasteland". November 9, 2008.