This amount, in 2009, represented 280,000 metric tons of e waste that entered ghana, of which only 1% were processed through a formal facility. Introduction the issues and problems posed by electronic waste in nigeria and the possible solutions to mitigate the associated environmental health risk are the focal aim and objective of this paper. Electronic waste is considered any electronic device, appliance, or piece of equipment that has reached its endoflife. Frontline profiled an e waste dump in ghana that explored the health risks of these practices. Accra generates 3,000 metric tonnes of waste in a day. Of the used product, the study concluded that 15% was not reused and was scrapped or discarded. Ewaste management, disposal and its impacts on the. Africa select meteorological stations and elevation. Making one of the earths most polluted places safer. The global ewaste monitor 2017, a joint effort of the itu, the united nations university unu and the international solid waste association iswa, provides the most comprehensive overview of global e waste statistics and an unprecedented level of detail, including an overview of the magnitude of the e waste problem in different regions. Dumping electronic waste onto the developing world is a hazardous but profitable business. Electronic waste management in ghana issues and practices 153 however, larry summers, a former economist of the world bank in 1991, reportedly justifies the economic sense of the exportation of e waste to developing countries. While plenty of recyclers run reputable operations, the shadowy companies just ship obsolete e waste to digital dumping grounds in countries like ghana. How to tackle the challenges posed by ewaste china al.
Photographs from the agbogbloshie ewaste landfill show scrap workers burning wires from auto harnesses and plasticencased electronics to recover copper. Electronic waste e waste recycling is growing worldwide and raising a number of environmental health concerns. Ghana has set itself the target of achieving universal access to electricity by the year 2020, in line with its national energy strategy of 2010. Chatterjee scientist e department of information technology electronics niketan, 6, c. Electronic waste dumpsite photographs and text by renee c. In other words, ending the export of used electronics from the wealthy developed world wont end. National case of scrap leadacid batteries management in ghana. Dec 12, 2015 in ghana, the global problem of ewaste has local consequences. Government policy and initiatives on ewaste in ghana by. Nearly 42 million tons of ewaste everything from microwaves and electric shavers to washing. According to the oecd, e waste is any appliance using an electric power supply that has reached its endof life. Electronic waste management in ghana issues and practices. This paper looks at the magnitude ewaste trade in ghana by analyzing the growing trade in electronic products ostensibly to bridge the digital divide.
Ghana parliament finally passes ewaste law ghana business news. However, the nonbiodegradable nature of plastic waste poses a big problem since the plastic waste can stay in the environment for a quiet period of time causing all sorts of problems. E waste, the term given to discarded electronic appliances, is often shipped by developed nations to poorer countries such as ghana. Annual global e waste management gem network meeting, july 15.
Legal and institutional requirements in ghana 7 levy will be fed into an electronic waste recycling fund that is aimed to provide finance for the management of electronic waste and reduce the adverse impact of electronic waste on human health and the environment. Jul 08, 2016 the first ever story on ewaste in ghana. What used to be the pristine waters of the korle lagoon in the city of accra, ghana, west africa, is now an electronics dumpsite that is so toxic that neither fish nor worms can survive. E waste describes electrical and electronic equipment or parts of it that have been discarded by the owner without any intention of reuse. Pdf health seeking behaviours among electronic waste. Thousands of waste pickers trawl for scrap metal at a huge, smoldering electronic waste dump in ghana each day. Electronic waste e waste is one of the fastestgrowing pollution problems worldwide given the presence if a variety of toxic substances which can contaminate the environment and threaten human health, if disposal protocols are not meticulously managed. The pah exposure of the general population was higher than in developed countries. The media have falsely labelled the agbogbloshie site as the worlds biggest ewaste dump i discovered no more electrical and electronic equipment eee waste, or ewaste, among the vehicles and other scrap metal than you might expect for a dump in a city of more than two million people, with a. Hazardous and electronic waste control and management act, 2016 act 917 download file. Since the late 1990s, industrial countries have been sending their ewaste here. Near the slum called old fadama, the agbogbloshie site became known as a destination for externally generated automobile and electronic scrap collected from mostly the western world. Electronic waste and india ministry of electronics and.
Pdf electronic waste management in ghana issues and practices. Waste management in tema ghana introduction tema is a coastal city, situated about 25km east of accra, it has a land area of 368. Analysis of improper disposal of solid wastes in a lowincome. Rating is available when the video has been rented. Agbogbloshies ewaste area covers almost a square kilometre strewn with a wide variety of electronics and smoking fires of burning waste. Pdf electronic waste management in ghana issues and. The urban solid waste management conundrum in ghana. Environmental and health impacts of informal ewaste. On the outskirts of ghana s biggest city sits a smoldering wasteland, a slum carved into the banks of the korle lagoon, one of the most polluted bodies of water on earth. Growth of information and communication technology sector has. The system has also not delivered the optimum economic and environmental result for. The ewaste processing sites in ghana exemplifies the challenges africa policy makers face with respect to ewaste and its impacts on health and the environment.
In this manual, weee and e waste are used as synonyms, and include all the 10. This amount, in 2009, represented 280,000 metric tons of ewaste that entered ghana, of which only 1% were processed through a formal facility. Abstract electronic waste e waste is one of the fastest growing waste streams in the country. Jan, 2016 the burning truth behind an e waste dump in africa ending the toxic smoke rising from an iconic dump in ghana will take more than curbing western waste. Nearly 42 million tons of e waste everything from microwaves and electric shavers to washing. Agbogbloshie is a nickname of a commercial district on the korle lagoon of the odaw river, near the center of accra, ghana s capital city. Increased population growth and rapid urbanisation have resulted in increased generation of volumes of waste in our cities. In ghana, the waste arrives via the port of tema, 20 miles to the east of the agbogbloshie dump. Many computers discarded in the united states end up at dumpsites like this one in ghana. In ghana, the global problem of ewaste has local consequences. Waste management has become one of the biggest challenges confronting developing countries, including ghana. This study examines electronic waste dumping as a global health problem, using the agbogbloshie slum in accra, ghana, one of e waste s most well known destinations, as a case study. The direct charging for use of public waste collection dumps and waste collection centres in urban areas of ghana was introduced with the emergence of structural adjustment programmes in ghana in the 1980s.
Several children are sick from the crude burning and dismantling of e waste that go on at e waste dumps at agbogbloshie in ghana. Young children there make a living by scavenging waste to reclaim gold, silver, iron, and copper. Rtd visits the countrys most infamous dumping ground. Pdf comparison between landfill gas and waste incineration. Stakeholder consultation on e waste in agbogbloshi urinary pah levels were assessed in e waste recycling workers and in controls in ghana. It is estimated that throughout the country only about 10% of solid wastes gen. The waste management system so far in ghana has not properly integrated other solutions as collection, treatment, and supply for reuse, reprocessing and final disposal.
Ghana, alhassan abdalla hustled the children out of the path of a squad of bulldozers. Accra, the capital, hosts a thriving secondhand market, a sprawling network of repair shops, and a range of activities which attempt to tap into the full potential of e. European e waste arrives illegally in nigeria a new investigation by panorama and the eia shows e waste is being exported to ghana and nigeria. No formal recycling factory of e waste in thailand. The rich worlds electronic waste, dumped in ghana citylab. In a 2011 report, ghana e waste country assessment, found that of 215,000 tons of electronics imported to ghana, 30% were brand new and 70% were used. Solid waste management challenges in urban areas of ghana. E waste, or electronic waste, is a broad term referring to a range of electronics, including. The west african country of ghana, currently undergoing intense economic growth, is an important centre for receiving, reusing, recovering and disposing of electronic waste. The children that work on this e waste dumpsite burn computers in order to extract any valuable metals that might. Waste act of 1990, which set a goal of diverting 25% of new mexicos municipal solid waste from landfills by 1995 and 50% by july 1, 2000. I will go for export restrictions and the arrest and prosecution of people who illegally export e waste to ghana. Photographer kevin mcelvaney documents a former wetland in ghana which is home to the worlds largest ewaste dumping site, and where most. Hazardous and electronic waste control and management act.
Making a living from toxic electronic waste in ghana in 2012 the planet generated about 49 million tonnes of electronic waste and by 2017 this is expected to rise to 65 million tonnes per year. Apr 27, 2017 20170427 director of waste management at the accra metropolitan assembly ama, anthony mensah, speaking on eezy fms morning edition in accra disclosed that the city of accra generates. Electronic waste e waste is one of the fastest growing segments of our nations waste stream. Africas electronic graveyards where the worlds ewaste. According to the united nations environment programme, 85 percent of the ewaste dumped in ghana and other parts of west africa is produced in ghana and west africa. E waste multi country case study 07 2014 case study ewaste management dr. Several different types of projects have been studied with this tool, a few examples of which are a comparison between landfill gas and waste incineration for power generation in ghana by anaglate. It also explores how stakeholders may take active roles in the management of electronic waste in zimbabwe. Ghana annually imports around 215,000 tons of secondhand consumer electronics from abroad, primarily from western europe, and generates another 129,000 tons of ewaste every year. The burning truth behind an ewaste dump in africa smithsonian. Oct 17, 2016 ghana has been cited as the country with the biggest ewaste dumping site in the world. The most common methods of solid waste disposal in ghana are through the combustion and land filling. Ghana is the first country in africa to launch official guidelines for sustainable e waste recycling management, said mr. While several toxic elements have been reported in agbogbloshies environment, there is limited knowledge of human exposures there.
Annual global ewaste management gem network meeting, july 15. Making a living from toxic electronic waste in ghana bbc news. Ghana to set up ewaste recycling plant ghana business news. The media have falsely labelled the agbogbloshie site as the worlds biggest ewaste dump i discovered no more electrical and electronic equipment eee waste, or ewaste, among the vehicles and other scrap metal than you might expect for a dump in a city of more than two million people, with a growing middle class.
The annual global volumes of e waste are rapidly increasing. What environmentalists get wrong about e waste in west africa. Major cities in ghana are battling with waste management problem such as tons of uncontrolled rubbish. About 500 container loads of electronic waste arrive every month, often disguised as development aid or secondhand products. Electronic waste management in ghana issues and practices 163 in all the ten regions in ghana which undertake phone and computer repairs and sales. What environmentalists get wrong about ewaste in west. National case of scrap leadacid batteries management in ghana by lambert faabeluon director, standards and compliance enforcement division dakar, senegal. Health seeking behaviours among electronic waste workers in ghana article pdf available in bmc public health 151. Proper solid waste management swm has become one critical environmental challenge faced by cities in ghana due to its externalities. E waste management is an issue in africa because of the increasing global production of electronic and electrical equipment, lack of clear action plans by african governments on the handling of e waste, and the absence of infrastructure for appropriate e waste management.
In order to manage waste, the environmental protection agency epa and the solid waste act favor an integrated solid waste. Mathias schluep world resources forum, empa building, lerchenfeldstrasse 5, ch9014 st. Notwithstanding the efforts by city authorities to remediate the problem, it still remains a monumental challenge and an elusive enterprise. Electronic waste risk assessment and management in ghana assess the environmental risk associated with e waste collection, recycling and disposal in ghana make recommendations to improve e waste management in ghana 2. A country report as one of the worlds largest exporters of electrical and electronic equipment eee and importers of waste electrical and electronic equipment e waste worldwide, china plays a key role in the social, economic, environmental and material life cycle of much of the worlds electrical and electronic equipment. In other words, ending the export of used electronics from the wealthy developed world wont end the burning in agbogbloshie. In almost all cases, e waste is not a local product, but originates from developed countries, says labunska, the harbor of accra receives 600 to 1,000 containers every month, adds ananes. One of the largest e waste sites is agbogbloshie ghana. Government policy and initiatives on e waste in ghana by. Ghanas way towards sustainable ewaste recycling first. Multiple elemental exposures amongst workers at the. It encompasses all broken, unusable, or outdatedobsolete electronic devices, components, and materials. Computer recycling west africa style click bbc news youtube.
Mathias schluep program director of the world resources forum and lead coordinator of the international sri programme. In addition, e waste also encompasses items that can be e cycled electronics that are going to be reused, resold, salvaged, or recycled. May 28, 2015 designforrecycling and takeback laws not just more recycling are needed to address the sprawling ewaste problem. And that is because, ewaste from almost every part of the world finds its way into the country, potentially poisoning its land and underground water sources with a cocktail of heavy metal chemicals such as cadmium, lead, barium, mercury. The only scientifically produced report on ewaste in ghana published in 2011 found that 171,000 tons of ewaste reaches the countrys informal recycling sector, adding that the amount of material that reaches the formal recycling sector accounted only for 0. Definition and taxonomy of electronic waste electronic waste is a term used to describe old, end of life electronic appliances such as computers, laptops, tvs, dvd players. Hundreds of thousands of tons of used electronicsmainly from western europe and the united statesare delivered in huge containers.
The processing and dumping of electronic waste in agbogbloshie is polluting the area and creating serious environmental concern. Hazardous and electronic waste control and mgt act 917. This file is licensed under the creative commons attributionshare alike 4. Millions of tonnes of electronic waste from western nations like the uk are being exported to african countries like ghana where they are dumped in huge landfill sites pictured. We want to have a creative mind, a critical eye, and a helping hand if we are to find solutions to e waste challenges.
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