E-waste and Child Health
Electronic and electrical waste (e-waste) is the fastest growing domestic waste stream in the world. The problem is most severe where impoverished city dwellers work in or live near informal dumps and landfills. These unmonitored sites in low- and middle-income countries receive a large share of global e-waste. E-waste contains valuable materials, such as gold and copper. E-waste can be harmful to the health of humans and the environment if it is recycled inappropriately and without sufficient training, protection, infrastructure, equipment or safeguards. Children are particularly vulnerable to some of the toxicants found in, or produced by, e-waste and e-waste recycling activities.
The WHO Initiative on E-waste and Child Health, started in 2013 aims to increase access to the evidence and knowledge base; spread greater awareness about the health impacts of e-waste; particularly in children; improve health sector capacity; promote e-waste exposure monitoring; facilitate relevant research; and develop and test country-based pilot initiatives to reduce e-waste related health risks. In June 2021, WHO published Children and digital dumpsites: e-waste exposure and child health, its first-ever report detailing the scope of the effects of e-waste on child health.
Millions of children are exposed to e-waste
Globally, more than 18 million children and adolescents between 5 – 17 years of age are engaged in industries of which waste processing is a subsector. E-waste recycling work can be considered child labour as it is potentially detrimental to children’s physical and mental development. Children as young as 5 years of age have been reported working in the sorting, dismantling and recycling of e-waste.
As many as 12.9 million women are at risk of dangerous e-waste exposure
Using the most recent estimates of the total number of informal waste workers worldwide, between 2.9-12.9 million women, including women of child-bearing age, may be at risk from exposure to toxic e-waste, placing themselves and their unborn children at risk.
62 million tonnes of e-waste produced in 2022, much of it sent to low- and middle-countries for disposal
The Global E-waste Monitor 2024 estimated that 62 million tonnes of e-waste were produced in 2022. Less than one quarter of this reached formal waste management or recycling facilities. Significant amounts of e-waste are suspected to be shipped overseas to low- and middle-income countries, where there may be a lack of regulation, or when regulation does exist, it may be poorly enforced. Here, e-waste is dismantled, recycled, refurbished or discarded, often in informal settings using hazardous methods and activities. E-waste contains valuable materials, including copper, gold, silver and cobalt, and has become an increasingly common source of income in communities where there are few other economic opportunities.
Dangerous methods are used to recycle e-waste in informal dumps
Informal e-waste recycling and activities have been documented in countries around the world. Activities include manual dismantling, open burning, heating and acid leaching and open dumping of unwanted items. These methods of e-waste recycling can pollute the air, dust, soil, water, food and animals. The dark stains seen on the ground in this photograph indicate that e-waste has been burnt in this location and lead now pollutes the soil. Lead exposure, even at low levels, is hazardous to the healthy development of children. Across the world, e-waste recycling sites can be highly diverse in terms of their size and characteristics. This photo shows waste burning at Agbogbloshie, Ghana, a vast dumpsite that previously had rudimentary scavenging, as well as workshops and retail kiosks that refurbished and resold used items and provided skilled apprenticeships to young people. In Agbogbloshie women and girls were often seen at e-waste recycling sites selling cold drinks and snacks to recyclers.
As many as 1,000 harmful substances may be released during e-waste recycling
Informal e-waste recycling and activities releases as many 1,000 harmful substances, including lead, mercury, nickel, brominated flame retardants and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. This photo shows waste, including e-waste, being burnt in Mexico using a brick kiln. Brick kilns produce significant amounts of air pollution, potentially contaminated with heavy metals and other toxicants, that can pose significant risks to kiln workers and nearby communities. This photo shows a different recycling scenario than the previous photo. In some Latin American countries e-waste recycling can be more dispersed, done on a small-scale in people’s homes, backyards and scattered across community areas, and is often recycled alongside municipal waste, making it a less visible activity. These activities often occur in low socio-economic neighbourhoods and areas, where they may not have access to health care systems.
Children are more vulnerable than adults to toxicants from e-waste
Children are more vulnerable than adults to toxicants released through e-waste due to their smaller size, less developed organs and rapid rate of growth and development. Prenatal and childhood exposure to informal e-waste recycling activities has been linked to a number of adverse health effects including negative birth outcomes, impaired neurodevelopment, changes in lung function and respiratory effects, DNA damage, impaired thyroid function and increased risk of some chronic diseases later in life, many of which may not be immediately evident.
Safely extracting resources from e-waste produces less carbon dioxide than mining for new materials
Extracting resources from e-waste using safe extraction technologies reduces health risks. It also produces substantially less carbon dioxide than mining for the same materials, benefiting the environment and reducing climate emissions. The Global E-waste Monitor 2024 found that the prodution of secondary raw materials from e-waste recycling avoided 52 billion kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalents from being released into the environment in 2022. This photo shows a public recycling bin in Australia where different types of e-waste can be deposited for safe recycling.
Several international and regional conventions exist to reduce illegal e-waste shipments
Several international and regional conventions aim to reduce illegal e-waste shipments from high-income countries to low- and middle-income countries. These include the Basel Convention, the Bamako Convention and the Waigani Convention.
The health community can take action to raise awareness on the dangers of e-waste
The health community can take action to reduce adverse health effects from e-waste by building health sector capacity to diagnose, monitor and prevent toxic exposure among children and women, raising awareness of the potential co-benefits of more responsible recycling and advocating for better data and health research on the health risks faced by informal e-waste workers. Health professionals hold unique positions as they can advocate for international, regional, national and local policies that will protect human health from e-waste. At the same time, they are trusted sources of information and play key roles at the local level by working with primary health care services or directly with communities affected by or involved in informal e-waste recycling and related activities.
WHO is working with international organizations, governments and communities to combat negative health effects linked to e-waste
In addition to implementing the goals of the WHO Initiative on E-waste and Child Health, WHO is working with international organizations, including other UN agencies, as a member of the E-waste Coalition, and its its global network of collaborating centres to compile research and build health professionals’ skills using training materials, including an online course. WHO is also working at regional and local level, in collaboration with regional offices and a range of local communities, governments and UN agencies in the WHO Region of the Americas and the African Region on pilot projects to develop frameworks to protect child health from e-waste exposure. These frameworks can be adapted and replicated in different countries and settings.
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Children and digital dumpsites: e-waste exposure and child health
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