Technical ReportPDF Available

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

April 2019

DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.34124.46723

Authors:

Jindrich Petrlik

Arnika Association

Sam Adu-Kumi

Ghana Environmental Protection Agency

Eric Akortia

Tshwane University of Technology

Show all 8 authorsHide

This study investigated POPs contamination at a total of six sites: the world’s largest e-waste scrap yard in Agbogbloshie (Ghana); medical waste incinerators in Accra (Ghana), Kumasi (Ghana) and Yaoundé (Cameroon); and two open-burning waste dump sites in Yaoundé (Cameroon). The study measured POPs in eggs because free-range chickens are “active samplers” of materials on the ground. Eggs also represent an important human exposure pathway through consumption. To our knowledge, this is the first study to measure POPs in free-range chicken eggs from hens foraging at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard, as well as in Yaoundé. The key findings of this study are: High levels of POPs were found at all six sites The sampling revealed very high levels of chlorinated dioxins, brominated dioxins, PCBs, PBDEs, and SCCPs in the eggs of chickens that had foraged in areas at the e-waste scrap yard, open burning dump sites and medical waste incinerators. Some of the highest levels of POPs ever measured in eggs were found in samples collected at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard in Ghana Eggs sampled at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard in Ghana contained the highest level of brominated dioxins ever measured in eggs and one of the highest ever measured levels of the flame retardant chemical, HBCD. These eggs also contained the second highest level of chlorinated dioxins ever measured in poultry eggs. An adult eating just one egg from a free-range chicken foraging in Agbogbloshie area would exceed the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) tolerable daily intake (TDI) for chlorinated dioxins by 220-fold. Indicator PCBs in these eggs were four-fold higher than the EU standard and dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs were 171-fold higher than the standard. These eggs also contained very high levels of SCCPs and PBDEs and relatively high levels of other POPs such as PeCB and HCB. Eggs sampled near medical waste incinerators exceeded EU dioxin standards Eggs near the medical waste incinerator in Accra, Ghana exceeded the EU dioxin limit by 13-fold and eggs sampled near the facility in Yaoundé exceeded the limit by more than two-fold. PCBs did not exceed limits, but significant levels were also found. High levels of HBCD were also found in eggs from the vicinity of the Yaoundé waste incinerator and one of the dumpsites. Stockholm and Basel Convention provisions need strengthening Hazardous waste limits in the Stockholm Convention should prevent the export of POPs waste, including e-waste. Currently the existing and proposed limits for POPs found in e-waste and generated by its ‘recycling’ in Africa and other developing regions is far too weak and allows the trade to continue. This includes limits for chlorinated dioxins/furans, flame retardant chemicals such as PBDEs and HBCD, and short chain chlorinated paraffins. These stricter limits (defined as Low POP Content in the Stockholm Convention) should be 50 mg/kg for PBDEs, 100 mg/kg for HBCD and SCCPs and 1 μg TEQ/kg for PCDD/Fs at a maximum. The Stockholm Convention could be further strengthened by listing brominated dioxins. The current provisional e-waste guidelines under the Basel Convention contain a loophole that allows for e-waste export under the guise of ‘export for repair’. This industry-promoted loophole makes the guidelines contradictory to the Convention because electronic products at end-of-life are hazardous waste. This loophole should be closed to preserve the integrity of the treaty. Greater attention is needed to fully implement sustainable healthcare waste management The data obtained from egg samples near medical waste incinerators in this study reinforce concerns over the inadequate healthcare waste management including the use of small incinerators. None of the medical waste incinerators in this study could be considered to employ Best Available Techniques / Best Environmental Practices due to their design, operation, lack of pollution control and lack of waste management for the waste incineration residues. Changing the hospital waste stream by moving away from PVC products, source reduction, segregation, recycling, training, and use of autoclaves and other non-combustion methods should be prioritized. A hospital facility designed for healing should not pollute the food chain or cause adverse impacts on human health and the environment.

Small medical waste incinerator in Kumasi chosen for sampling in this second largest city of Ghana. Photo: Martin Holzknecht, Arnika.

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Photo shows small medical waste incinerator in Yaoundé, in which surrounding the eggs were sampled. Photo by CREPD.

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Dioxin profile of eggs and soil sample from Accra -Agbogbloshie.

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Waste incineration ash on the ground at the closed medical waste incinerator area in Accra most likely contaminates free range chicken by PCDD/Fs as it still contains 551 pg WHO-TEQ g -1 dw of these chemicals.

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Comparison of PCDD/Fs congener patterns in samples of ash from Mozambique and hospital waste incinerator ash from Accra, Ghana. In order to get equal comparison, the levels for each congener are in relative percentage from total PCDD/Fs value (in absolute real amount). Source of information about PCDD/Fs in ashes from Mozambique is Peter I. K. Mochungong's thesis [133].

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Persistent Organic

Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs:

Report from Africa

APRIL, 2019

AUTHORS:

Jindřich Petrlik – Sam Adu-Kumi – Jonathan Hogarh – Eric Akortia

– Gilbert Kuepouo – Peter Behnisch – Lee Bell – Joseph DiGangi

Aliation of the authors:

1Arnika – Toxics and Waste Programme, Prague, Czech Republic

2IPEN, Gothenburg, Sweden

3Chemicals Control and Management Centre, Environmental Protection

Agency, Accra, Ghana.

4Department of Theoretical and Applied Biology, Kwame Nkrumah

University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana

5Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, National Nuclear Research Institute,

Accra, Ghana

6CREPD - Centre de Recherche et d‘Education pour le Développement,

Yaoundé, Cameroon

7BDS – BioDetection Systems, Amsterdam, Netherlands

8NTN – National Toxics Network, Australia

Jindřich Petrlik1,2 – Sam Adu-Kumi3 – Jonathan Hogarh4

– Eric Akortia5 – Gilbert Kuepouo6

– Peter Behnisch7– Lee Bell2,8– Joseph DiGangi2

ACCRA – YAOUNDÉ – GOTHENBURG - PRAGUE

APRIL, 2019

Persistent Organic

Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs:

Africa

Report from

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Photos from Agbogbloshie by Marn Holzknecht,

Arnika Associaon.

Execuve Summary ��6

1� Introducon ��7

2� Sampling and analycal methods �� 8

3� Descripon of hot spots ��10

3�1 Ghana ��10

3�1�1 Accra - Agbogbloshie, e-waste scrap yard ��10

3�1�2 Accra – medical waste incinerator ��12

3�1�3 Kumasi – medical waste incinerator ��14

3�2 Cameroon �� 14

3�2�1 Yaoundé, medical waste incinerator ��14

3�2�2 Yaounde – waste dumpsites ��14

4� Results and discussion �� 15

4�1 Free-range chicken eggs ��15

4�1�1 Dioxins (PCDD/Fs) and other unintenonally produced POPs ��16

4�1�1�1 Dioxin-like acvity of eggs measured by using bioassay analyses ��18

4�1�1�2 PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs ��20

4�1�1�3 Hexachlorobenzene, pentachlorobenzene and hexachlorobutadiene ��23

4�1�2 Non-dioxin-like PCBs ��23

4�1�3 PBDD/Fs and BFRs in eggs �� 23

4�1�4 Short chain chlorinated parans (SCCPs) �� 25

4�1�5 Background levels of POPs in eggs �� 25

4�2 E-waste scrap yard �� 25

4�3 Dump sites �� 28

4�4 Waste incinerators ��29

5� Conclusions ��34

6� Discussion & Policy Implicaons: ��34

6�1 POPs waste and e-waste ��34

6�2 Healthcare waste management ��35

6�3 Environmental, food and human monitoring ��36

7� Aknowledgements �� 36

8� Abbreviaons ��36

9� References �� 38

Content

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Executive Summary

Incineraon of medical waste and open burning of waste – including electronic waste – are potenally large

sources of toxic chemicals known as persistent organic pollutants (POPs)� These substances are slated for

global reducon and eliminaon under the Stockholm Convenon�

Medical waste incineraon and open burning are common in developing countries and both are listed in the

Stockholm Convenon as source categories for unintenonally-produced POPs such as hexachlorobenzene

(HCB), hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD), pentachlorobenzene (PeCB), PCBs, chlorinated dioxins/furans (PCDD/F),

and polychlorinated naphthalenes� Municipal and electronic waste is also known to contain other chemicals

listed in the Stockholm Convenon such as short chain chlorinated parans (SCCPs), polybrominated diphenyl

ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD)�

This study invesgated POPs contaminaon at a total of six sites: the world’s largest e-waste scrap yard in

Agbogbloshie (Ghana); medical waste incinerators in Accra (Ghana), Kumasi (Ghana) and Yaoundé (Cameroon);

and two open-burning waste dump sites in Yaoundé (Cameroon)� The study measured POPs in eggs because

free-range chickens are “acve samplers” of materials on the ground� Eggs also represent an important

human exposure pathway through consumpon� To our knowledge, this is the rst study to measure POPs

in free-range chicken eggs from hens foraging at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard, as well as in Yaoundé�

The key ndings of this study are:

High levels of POPs were found at all six sites

The sampling revealed very high levels of chlorinated dioxins, brominated dioxins, PCBs, PBDEs, and SCCPs in

the eggs of chickens that had foraged in areas at the e-waste scrap yard, open burning dump sites and medical

waste incinerators�

Some of the highest levels of POPs ever measured in eggs were found in

samples collected at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard in Ghana

Eggs sampled at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard in Ghana contained the highest level of brominated dioxins ever

measured in eggs and one of the highest ever measured levels of the ame retardant chemical, HBCD� These

eggs also contained the second highest level of chlorinated dioxins ever measured in poultry eggs� An adult

eang just one egg from a free-range chicken foraging in Agbogbloshie area would exceed the European Food

Safety Authority (EFSA) tolerable daily intake (TDI) for chlorinated dioxins by 220-fold� Indicator PCBs in these

eggs were four-fold higher than the EU standard and dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs were 171-fold higher than

the standard� These eggs also contained very high levels of SCCPs and PBDEs and relavely high levels of other

POPs such as PeCB and HCB�

Eggs sampled near medical waste incinerators exceeded EU dioxin standards

Eggs near the medical waste incinerator in Accra, Ghana exceeded the EU dioxin limit by 13-fold and eggs

sampled near the facility in Yaoundé exceeded the limit by more than two-fold� PCBs did not exceed limits,

but signicant levels were also found� High levels of HBCD were also found in eggs from the vicinity of the

Yaoundé waste incinerator and one of the dumpsites�

Stockholm and Basel Convenon provisions need strengthening

Hazardous waste limits in the Stockholm Convenon should prevent the export of POPs waste, including

e-waste� Currently the exisng and proposed limits for POPs found in e-waste and generated by its ‘recycling’

in Africa and other developing regions is far too weak and allows the trade to connue� This includes limits for

chlorinated dioxins/furans, ame retardant chemicals such as PBDEs and HBCD, and short chain chlorinated

parans� These stricter limits (dened as Low POP Content in the Stockholm Convenon) should be 50 mg/

kg for PBDEs, 100 mg/kg for HBCD and SCCPs and 1 μg TEQ/kg for PCDD/Fs at a maximum� The Stockholm

Convenon could be further strengthened by lisng brominated dioxins�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

The current provisional e-waste guidelines under the Basel Convenon contain a loophole that allows for

e-waste export under the guise of ‘export for repair’� This industry-promoted loophole makes the guidelines

contradictory to the Convenon because electronic products at end-of-life are hazardous waste� This loophole

should be closed to preserve the integrity of the treaty�

Greater aenon is needed to fully implement sustainable healthcare

waste management

The data obtained from egg samples near medical waste incinerators in this study reinforce concerns over the

inadequate healthcare waste management including the use of small incinerators� None of the medical waste

incinerators in this study could be considered to employ Best Available Techniques / Best Environmental

Pracces due to their design, operaon, lack of polluon control and lack of waste management for the

waste incineraon residues� Changing the hospital waste stream by moving away from PVC products, source

reducon, segregaon, recycling, training, and use of autoclaves and other non-combuson methods should

be priorized� A hospital facility designed for healing should not pollute the food chain or cause adverse

impacts on human health and the environment�

1. Introduction

POPs contaminaon in developing countries can include both domesc and foreign sources� Two potenally

large sources are incineraon of domesc medical waste and open burning of waste – including electronic

waste (e-waste) that comes from developed countries� Both types of sources are listed in the Stockholm

Convenon as source categories for unintenonally-produced POPs� In addion, electronic waste is known to

contain short chain chlorinated parans (SCCPs) and ame retardant chemicals listed in the treaty�

Medical waste incineraon is a major dioxin source, primarily due to combuson of PVC plasc which is

a dominant source of organically bound chlorine [1]� The health sector is also a source of mercury polluon

due to improper disposal of mercury-containing thermometers and sphygmomanometers� The Stockholm

Convenon Guidelines on Best Available Techniques and Guidance on Best Environmental Pracces note

concerns over small hospital incinerators and that, “Due to the poor design, operaon, equipment and

monitoring of many exisng small hospital incinerators these installaons cannot be regarded as employing

best available techniques” [2]� In developing countries, medical waste is oen not segregated by type and

pollung open pit and single chamber incinerators are common� Succesful implementaon of medical waste

management and non-combuson techniques has been demonstrated in developing countries [3-6]�

Global esmates of annual e-waste producon exceed 40 million tons with an annual growth rate of 4 to 5

percent [7]� The export of electronic waste from developed countries to developing countries [8], under the

guise of ‘recycling’, ‘repair’ and/or ‘reuse’, has eecvely become a form of hazardous waste dumping that

internaonal agreements such as the Basel Convenon or Stockholm Convenon were created to prevent�

In this study, free-range chicken eggs were used to invesgate POPs contaminaon in Cameroon and Ghana

near medical waste incinerators and open burning dumpsites – including a large e-waste site� Free-range

chicken eggs are sensive indicators of POP contaminaon in soils/dust and represent an important human

exposure pathway [9-11]� As “acve samplers” they can be used to reveal POPs contaminaon, parcularly in

areas impacted by dioxins (PCDD/Fs) and PCBs [12-17]�

This study invesgated POPs contaminaon at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard (Ghana), medical waste

incinerators in Accra (Ghana), Kumasi (Ghana) and Yaoundé (Cameroon), and two open-burning waste dump

sites in Yaoundé (Cameroon)� To our knowledge, this is the rst study to measure POPs in free-range chicken

eggs from hens foraging at the Agbogbloshie e-waste scrap yard, and in Yaoundé as well�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

2. Sampling and analytical methods

The samples of free-range chicken eggs, soil and waste incineraon residues discussed in this report were

sampled during second half of 2018� Their analyses were conducted in European laboratories in the period

between October 2018 and February 2019�

Six pooled samples of free-range chicken eggs were collected in three African cies: Yaoundé, the capital of

Cameroon; Accra, the capital of Ghana; and Kumasi, Ghana� Samples of soil, ash or soot were also sampled

at sampling sites in Ghana� As performed in other studies, a sample of eggs purchased in a supermarket

(in Accra) served as a background sample as it was from not free-range chickens [14]� Six localies in three

cies were expected to be contaminated by POPs and parculary unintenonally produced POPs (UPOPs) to

a certain level� A basic descripon of these six localies can be found later in this report (see chapter 3)�

Pooled samples of more individual egg samples were collected at each of the selected sampling sites in order

to obtain more representave samples� Table 1 summarizes the basic data about the size of samples and the

measured levels of fat content in each of the pooled samples� All samples were taken in 2018�

Free-range chicken eggs from the four pooled samples (one sample from Yaoundé and three samples

from Ghana) and one pooled sample of commercial eggs (non free-range) from Accra were analyzed for

polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs)1 and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-

PCBs) using the DR CALUX® method� These were sent to a Dutch ISO 17025 cered laboratory (BioDetecon

Systems B�V�, Amsterdam) performing the cell-based screening analysis DR CALUX® according to the European

Standard EC/644/2017� The procedure for the BDS DR CALUX® bioassay has previously been described in detail

[18]� Briey, rat liver H4IIE cells stably transfected with an AhR-controlled luciferase reporter gene construct

were cultured in an α-MEM culture medium supplemented with 10% (v/v) FCS under standard condions

(37ºC, 5% CO2, 100% humidity)� Cells were exposed in triplicate on 96-well microter plates containing the

standard 2,3,7,8-TCDD calibraon range, a reference egg sample (analysed by HRGC-HRMS; for the bioassay

apparent recovery), a procedure blank, a DMSO blank and the sample extracts in DMSO� Following a 24-hour

incubaon period, cells were lysed� A luciferin containing soluon was added and the luminescence was

measured by using a luminometer (Mithras, Berthold Centro XS3)�

Table 1: Overview of samples of chicken eggs, soil and waste incineraon residues from selected sites in Cameroon and Ghana.

No� Sample Locality Matrix Month/Year

of sampling

Eggs in pooled samples;

No� of points sampled

(soil/ash)

Fat

content

(%)

1YA- 1 Yaoundé - TCK Quart� Eggs 08/2018 619�6

2YA- 1 Yaoundé - hospital Eggs 08/2018 514�6

3YA- 1 Yaoundé - Etetak Quart� Eggs 08/2018 614�3

4ACC-M-E Accra (supermarket) Eggs 12/2018 68�8

5AGB-E Accra - Agbogbloshie Eggs 12/2018 414�7

6AGB-S-1 Accra - Agbogbloshie Soil 12/2018 4-

7KBI-E Accra - hospital Eggs 12/2018 612�3

8KBI-A-1 Accra - hospital Ash/soil 12/2018 5-

9KU-E Kumasi - hospital Eggs 12/2018 514�7

10 KU-A-1 Kumasi - hospital Soot 12/2018 NA -

The DR CALUX® bioassay method has been shown to be a cost-ecient semi-quantave eect-based toxicity

screening analyses for all kinds of stable dioxin-like compounds (PCDD/Fs, dl-PCBs, PBDD/Fs, PBBs, chlorinated

and brominated polycyclic aromac hydrocarbons, N-dioxins)2 ; however, for conrmaon it is recommended

1 Synonym „dioxins“ is used for this group of chemicals as well, while „brominated dioxins“ applies for PBDD/Fs, another group of

polyhalogenated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans� We use both these shorter synonyms in this report�

2 ‘‘Bioanalycal methods‘‘ means methods based on the use of biological principles like cell-based assays, receptorassays or

immunoassays� They do not give results at the congener level but merely an indicaon of the TEQ level, expressed in Bioanalycal

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

to go for more specic PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs congener specic analyses, which also allows examinaon of

nger prints of dioxins (PCDD/F congener paerns), specic for dierent sources of polluon� One sample

from a Yaoundé representave site was potenally inuenced by both waste incineraon and open burning

of medical waste� All pooled egg samples from Ghana as well as samples of soil, ash and soot were analyzed

for content of individual PCDD/Fs and an extended list of PCB congeners by HRGC-HRMS at the accredited

laboratory of the State Veterinary Instute in Prague, Czech Republic�

All samples were also analyzed for content of non-dioxin-like (indicator) PCBs (i-PCBd), DDT and its

metabolites, hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs), hexachlorobutadiene (HCBD), pentachlorobenzene (PeCB) and

hexachlorobenzene (HCB) in a Czech cered laboratory (University of Chemistry and Technology in Prague,

Department of Food Chemistry and Analysis)� The analytes were extracted by a mixture of organic solvents

hexane: dichloromethane (1:1)� The extracts were cleaned by means of gel permeaon chromatography

(GPC)� The idencaon and quancaon of the analyte was conducted by gas chromatography coupled

with tandem mass spectrometry detecon in electron ionizaon mode�

The eggs from Yaoundé, Agbogbloshie and the Accra supermarket as well as soil/ash samples from Agbogbloshie

were also analyzed for PBDEs and HBCD� Three samples (eggs from Agbogbloshie, Accra supermarket and

soil/ash from Agbogbloshie) were also analyzed for novel BFRs3 (nBFRs), tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) and

short chain chlorinated parans (SCCPs)� All of these analyses were conducted in a Czech cered laboratory

(Instute of Chemical Technology, Department of Food Chemistry and Analysis)�

Idencaon and quancaon of PBDEs and nBFRs were performed using gas chromatography coupled with

mass spectrometry in negave ion chemical ionizaon mode (GC-MS-NICI)� Idencaon and quancaon

of HBCD isomers were performed by liquid chromatography interfaced with tandem mass spectrometry with

electrospray ionizaon in negave mode (UHPLC-MS/MS-ESI)�

The extract which was prepared same way as for the other analyses was transferred into cyclohexane and

diluted� Idencaon and quancaon of SCCPs was accessed via gas chromatography/me-of-ight high

resoluon mass spectrometry (GC/TOF-HRMS) in the mode of negave chemical ionizaon (NCI)� The free-

range chicken egg samples from the Agbogbloshie scrap yard, the control group chicken egg sample from

supermarket in Accra and mixed soil/ash samples from Agbogbloshie, were also analysed for polybrominated

dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) in MAS laboratory, Muenster, Germany� Accredited method

MAS_PA002, ISO/IEC 17025:2005 was used to determine PBDD/Fs� The basic steps of the analyses can be

summarized as follows:

»Addion of 13C12-labelled PBDD/F internal standards to the sample extract

»Mul-step chromatographic clean-up of the extract

» Addion of 13C12-labelled PBDD/F - recovery standards

» HRGC/HRMS analysis

» Quancaon via the internal labelled PBDD/F-standards (isotope diluon technique and internal standard

technique)�

Equivalents (BEQ) to acknowledge the fact that not all compounds present in a sample extract that produce a response in the test

may obey all requirements of the TEQ-principle [19]� European Commission, Commission Regulaon (EU) No 252/2012 of 21 March

2012 laying down methods of sampling and analysis for the ocial control of levels of dioxins, dioxin-like PCBs and non-dioxin-like

PCBs in certain foodstus and repealing Regulaon (EC) No 1883/2006 Text with EEA relevance European Commission, Editor� 2012:

Ocial Journal of the European Communies� p� L 84, 23�3�2012, p� 1–22�

3 This group of chemicals is represented by following chemicals: 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy) ethane (BTBPE),

decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), hexabromobenzene (HBB), octabromo-1,3,3-trimethylpheny-1-indan (OBIND),

2,3,4,5,6-pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB), and pentabromotoluene (PBT)�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

3. Description of hot spots

Localies chosen for sampling in Ghana and Cameroon were sites where higher exposure to unintenonally

produced POPs, such as dioxins were expected due to the acvies on or near the sites� Those sites were

of two categories: 1) sites with open burning of waste, and electronic waste in parcular (dumpsites and

e-waste scrap yards), and 2) medical waste incinerators� Most of them were located in capitals of these two

African countries� One site in Ghana was located in Kumasi which is the second largest city in the country�

Each site is described more detailed in the following text�

3.1 Ghana

3.1.1 Accra - Agbogbloshie, e-waste scrap yard

Agbogbloshie is part of Ghana’s capital city Accra� It is the nickname of a commercial district on the Korle

Lagoon of the Odaw River, near the city center� It became known as a desnaon for automobile and electronic

scrap collected from Accra, but also from many other locaons� Roughly 40,000 Ghanaians inhabited the area

of Agbogbloshie according the esmates made between years 2009 - 2011, most of whom are migrants from

rural areas [20]� In 2018, the populaon is esmated to be even higher� Oteng-Ababio et al� [21] claim that

this selement now serves over 80,000 people�

The Agbogbloshie market and scrap yard is situated on at ground alongside the Densu River� During periods

of heavy rainfall much of the site becomes ooded and, during these mes, it is likely that surface dusts

and soils, along with any chemical contaminant that may contain, are carried into the adjacent, lower-lying

lagoons and the Densu river which ulmately ows into the ocean� For more details about the locaon, see

Figure 1�

The Basel Acon Network (BAN) has referred to Agbogbloshie as a “digital dumping ground”� Its recent report

conrmed Ghana as one of the desnaons for used electronics (in fact e-waste) exported from European

Union� „There have been numerous stories in the press over the years about Agbogbloshie, and with it much

denial by some that the locaon is really a signicant global dumpsite for imported electronic waste,” states

BAN in its recent report [8]� Prior studies have shown that Agbogbloshie recycling site received approximately

171,000 tonnes of e-waste in 2009, which were exclusively processed through informal pracces [22]�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

At Agbogbloshie, the main electronic wastes being processed are obsolete computers, monitors and televisions�

These are manually dismantled at numerous small workshops within the market� Certain materials, mainly

plasc coated wires and cables, are subsequently taken to sites on the edge of the market where they are

burned to enable the separaon of metals from plascs� This work is commonly done by children or very

young men�

Concerns remain over methods of waste processing at Agbogbloshie scrap yard, especially burning eming

toxic chemicals into the air, land and water� Exposure is especially hazardous to children, as toxic chemicals

released due to acvies at the site are known to inhibit the development of the reproducve system, the

nervous system, and development of the brain� Concerns about human health and the environment of

Agbogbloshie connue to be raised as the area remains heavily polluted [20]�

Figure 1: Map of the Agbogbloshie market and scrap yard area. Source: [23],

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

A number of studies have focused on various consequences of this e-waste and car scrap yard in Accra as

it raises not only concerns regarding the environmental polluon but also its social aspects [23-26] such as

poverty of the community living at this site and related economic perspecves [27]�

Previous studies found serious contaminaon of the air, soil, sediments or water by various contaminants

including heavy metals [28, 29], polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) [28, 30], polychlorinated biphenyls

(PCBs) [31, 32], polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) [33], chlorinated and brominated polycyclic aromac

hydrocarbons [34], and polychlorinated as well as polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans

(PCDD/Fs, PBDD/Fs) [31, 35, 36]�

Other studies focused on levels of PCDD/Fs [37] and/or lead [38] in blood, PCBs in breast milk [39], and PAHs

[40] or heavy metals in urine [41, 42] of workers at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard� Health aspects of living

and working at Agbogbloshie was a topic discussed in separate studies [43-45]� Huang et al� [46] focused on

eects of contaminaon on water organisms in Korle Lagoon�

Some reports looked at the situaon in the Agbogbloshie scrap yard from broader perspecve [24, 26, 47-51]�

In addion to this major site in Accra itself, smaller e-waste recycling and disposal operaons can be found

in other cies� For example, a scrap yard in Koforidua, a smaller city to the north of Accra, is thought to be

typical of these numerous small e-waste recycling operaons within Ghana, engaged in similar acvies to

those at Agbogbloshie, but on a far smaller scale [47]�

3.1.2 Accra – medical waste incinerator

A small medical waste incinerator in Accra was second site chosen for sampling�

The chosen hospital used a locally built small-scale DeMonort type of medical waste incinerator� It had

„…an in-built drier that could dry wet waste very fast and a burning chamber for ve tons of waste which could

burn completely within three hours“ [52]� Adjacent to the incinerator is the ash dump site where the boom

ash and some y ash was disposed of aer incineraon� This waste incinerator started operaon in 2004 and

stopped working several years ago� However, the ash dumpsite was le next to the waste incinerator� There

is family living in a house next to the waste incinerator and raising chickens which have access to whole area

including the ash dumpsite�

This waste incinerator was studied by Adama et al� [52]� Their study has focused on heavy metals in ash and

soil in the area surrounding the waste incinerator� They ancipated: „ … that connuous exposure to heavy

metals in ash and soil may pose direct health risk to waste workers at the incinerator site and unauthorized

persons who come to the waste incineraon area and remotely through the consumpon of exposed plants

and animals that may have accumulated heavy metals in their ssues and water sources contaminated with

heavy metals or by the inhalaon of heavy metal laden dust from polluted soils or ash“ [52]�

The Stockholm Convenon has idened waste incineraon as a sector “for comparavely high formaon

and release” of persistent organic pollutants such as dioxins, furans, PCBs, hexachlorobenzene and

pentachlorobenzene [53]�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Figure 2: Sampling of ash next to the

medical waste ininerator in Accra.

Photo: Marn Holzknecht, Arnika.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

3.1.3 Kumasi – medical waste incinerator

In Kumasi we have chosen one of the small medical waste incinerators and its neighborhood as the sampling

site� The waste incinerator burns waste only from the hospital once per week� This waste incinerator does

not store ash in the area of the hospital but it is collected by a waste management company for disposal

elsewhere� The waste incinerator does not have any air polluon abatement� It has a chimney approximately

10 m high� It has operated for 8 years now�

3.2 Cameroon

3.2.1 Yaoundé, medical waste incinerator

In order to address the negave impacts of improper disposal of medical wastes, especially contaminated

sharps from the Cameroonian health care facilies, low-cost small-scale incinerators with very short chimenies

are constructed and used in urban and rural hospitals� For this study, we choose the Mimboman health care

centre located in the Eastern of the City of Yaoundé, the polical capital of Cameroon� This healthcare centre

is located in a densely populated residenal area� The low cost incinerator operates with gasoline a couple

of days in a week or so� Categories of wastes incinerated include plascs and other materials containing

polyvinyl chloride, syringes and needles, and biological residues� Ashes from the incinerators are buried in

open pits close to the incinerator� Both the incinerator and the open pits are within the hospital premises, less

than 100 m to the nearby homes�

3.2.2 Yaounde – waste dumpsites

Based on the criteria of close proximity with homes where free-range chicken are raised, the composite

nature of the waste dumped (organic maer, cardboard, plascs, electronics, cables, tyres, etc…); two waste

dumpsites subjected to regular open burning as way to reduce the waste stockpile volume were selected in

the city of Yaoundé, the polical capital of Cameroon� The two sites are located in the Etetak and TCK quarters

in Yaoundé�

Figure 3: Small medical waste incinerator in Kumasi chosen for

sampling in this second largest city of Ghana.

Photo: Marn Holzknecht, Arnika.

Figure 4: Photo shows small medical waste incinerator in

Yaoundé, in which surrounding the eggs were sampled.

Photo by CREPD.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4. Results and discussion

4.1 Free-range chicken eggs

Results of chemical analyses of six free-range chicken eggs samples from Yaoundé, Accra and Kumasi for

various POPs are summarized in Table 2� Details about sampling and sampled localies are in chapters 2 and

3� Their evaluaon is discussed further in separate subchapters according the natural groups of POPs� There is

no special subchapter dedicated to organochlorine pescides in these eggs, DDT and metabolites and HCHs as

they were not found in very high levels in our samples in comparison with samples from some other locaons

in Africa, e�g� eggs from Vikuge, Tanzania sampled in 2005 with observed level of DDT at 7041 ng g-1 fat [54]�

Table 2: Overview of results of chemical analyses for POPs in six free-range chicken egg samples, and one egg sample from

a commercial farm from two African countries, Cameroon and Ghana. Samples were taken in 2018. Levels of POPs are in ng g-1 fat

if not specied otherwise.

Locality

Yaoundé-

TCK

Quart�

Yaoundé

-hospital

Yaoundé-Ete-

tak Quart�

Accra –

Agbogbl�

Accra -

hospital

Kumasi

- hospi-

tal

Accra-su-

per-market

stand�/

limits

Sample YA- 1 YA- 2 YA- 3 AGB-E KBI-E KU-E ACC-M-E

Fat content

(%) 19�6 14�6 14�3 14�7 12�3 14�7 8�8

PCDD/Fs (pg

TEQ g-1 fat) NA 4�6 NA 661 49 1�7 0�39 2�50

DL PCBs (pg

TEQ g-1 fat) NA 6�8 NA 195 14 0�86 0�17

Total PCDD/F

+ DL PCBs (pg

TEQ g-1 fat)

NA 11�4 NA 856 63 2�6 0�56 5�00

PCDD/Fs DR

CALUX (pg

BEQ g-1 fat)

NA 4�5 NA NA NA NA NA

Total PCDD/

Fs + DL PCBs -

DR CALUX (pg

BEQ g-1 fat)

NA 9�6 NA 840 56 5�2 1�2

PBDD/Fs (pg

TEQ g-1 fat) NA NA NA 300 NA NA < 8�5

HCB 1�5 1�4 7�1 25�1 3�63 0�76 < 0�2 -

PeCB 0�56 0�35 4�7 22�4 2�88 < 0�2 < 0�2

HCBD < 0�1 < 0�1 < 0�1 < 0�2 < 0�2 < 0�2 < 0�2

7 PCB 28 32 36 286 7�8 < 1�4 < 1�4 -

6 PCB 27 30 34 168 7�8 < 1�2 < 1�2 40�00

PCNs * NA NA NA < 1�4 NA NA < 1�4 -

SCCPs NA NA 149 2067 NA NA 62

sum HCH 4�5 2�5 7�6 < 0�6 < 0�6 < 0�6 < 0�6

sum DDT 39 22 36 9�7 79 0�82 < 1�2

*Seven PCN congeners were measured: PCN 52, 56, 66, 70, 73, 74 and 75.

Measured levels of POPs in chicken eggs were compared with legislave limits established in the European

Union, although not all measured chemicals in this study have dened limits� For example, the European Union

does not currently have a limit for brominated ame retardants or PBDD/Fs in chicken eggs� Limit values for

eggs are summarized in Table 3� These limits are used for comparison with levels measured in food in many

other studies, mainly in developing countries which do not have limits for dioxins and other POPs in food�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Table 3: Limit concentraon values for OCPs, PCBs and PCDD/Fs-TEQs in chicken eggs.

Hen eggs

EU ML1EU MRL2

Unit pg g-1 fat ng g-1 fresh weight

WHO-PCDD/Fs TEQ 2�5 -

WHO-PCDD/Fs-dl-PCB TEQ 5�0 -

PCBs340 -

HCB -20

DDT total4-50

γ-HCH (lindane) -10

α-, β-HCH* -20, 10

Notes to the Table:

1EU Regulaon (EC) N°1259/2011� Maximum level (ML) – food with PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs concentraons

above this level is considered to be contaminated and is not suggested for consumpon�

2Regulaon (EC) N°149/2008� Maximum residue level (MRL) means the upper legal level of a concentraon

for a pescide residue in or on food or feed set in accordance with the Regulaon, based on good agricultural

pracce and the lowest consumer exposure necessary to protect vulnerable consumers�

3sum of PCB28, PCB52, PCB101, PCB138, PCB153 and PCB180

4sum of p,p´-DDT, o,p´-DDT, p,p´-DDE and p,p´-DDD

*MRL is set separately for each isomer

4.1.1 Dioxins (PCDD/Fs) and other unintentionally produced POPs

Annex C of the Stockholm Convenon lists six unintenonally-produced POPs: HCB, hexachlorobutadiene

(HCBD), pentachlorobenzene (PeCB), PCBs, PCDD/F, and polychlorinated naphthalenes� Eggs measured in

this study contained HCB, HCBD, PeCB, PCBs, and PCDD/Fs� Polychlorinated naphthalenes were not measured

only in two egg samples and one soil sample (see chapter 4�2)� They were below LOQ in egg samples�

PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs

Dioxins belong to a group of 75 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin (PCDD) congeners and 135 polychlorinated

dibenzofuran (PCDF) congeners, of which 17 are of toxicological concern� Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)

are a group of 209 dierent congeners that can be divided into two groups according to their toxicological

properes: 12 congeners exhibit toxicological properes similar to dioxins and are therefore oen referred

to as ‘dioxin-like PCBs’ (dl-PCBs)� The other PCBs do not exhibit dioxin-like toxicity, but have a dierent

toxicological prole and are referred to as ‘non dioxin-like PCBs’ (ndl-PCBs) [55]� Technical mixtures of PCBs

are characterized by 6, somemes also 7 indicator PCB congeners (i-PCBs)� Levels of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs are

expressed in total WHO-TEQ calculated according to toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) set by a WHO experts

panel in 2005 [56]� These new TEFs were used to evaluate dioxin-like toxicity in pooled samples of chicken

eggs from two African countries as well as in sampled soil and waste incineraon residues from Ghana (see

Tables 2 and 8)�

Chlorinated dioxins (PCDD/Fs) are known to be extremely toxic� Numerous epidemiologic studies have

revealed a variety of human health eects linked to chlorinated dioxin exposure including cardiovascular

disease, diabetes, cancer, porphyria, endometriosis, early menopause, alteraon of testosterone and thyroid

hormones, and altered immune system response among others [57, 58]� Laboratory animals given dioxins

suered a variety of eects, including an increase in birth defects and sllbirths� Fish exposed to these

substances died shortly aer the exposure ended� Food (parcularly from animals) is the major source of

exposure for humans [59]�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Chlorinated dioxins became known to the public in the 1970s as a result of their contaminaon of Agent

Orange, a defoliant pescide mixture sprayed by the US during the Vietnam war�4 The producon of 2,4,5 T

pescide as basic ingredient for Agent Orange le one of the most seriously contaminated sites in Europe

[61-63] and sick workers with many symptoms of exposure to most toxic of dioxin congeners 2,3,7,8-TCDD

[64, 65]�

PeCB and HCB

PeCB and HCB are primarily produced unintenonally during combuson, as well as thermal and industrial

processes� In the past, they were produced intenonally as pescides or technical substances and present

as impuries in products such as solvents or pescides� PeCB was used as a component in PCB products, in

dyestu carriers, as a fungicide, a ame retardant and as a chemical intermediate for the producon of the

pescide, quintozene [66]� In high doses, HCB is lethal to some animals and, at lower levels, adversely aects

their reproducve success� HCB has been found in food of all types [59]� Pentachlorobenzene is very toxic to

aquac organisms and may cause long-term adverse eects in the aquac environment [67]�

HCBD

HCBD occurs as a by-product during the the producon of chlorinated hydrocarbons such as perchloroethylene,

trichloroethylene and carbon tetrachloride� It is also formed unintenonally during incineraon processes

including incineraon processes of acetylene and incineraon of chlorine residues� Perchloroethylene is

widely used in dry cleaning and trichloroethylene and carbone tetrachloride have been used extensively

as degreasing agents and as a solvents for other chlorine-containing compounds� HCBD is very toxic to

aquac organisms and causes kidney damage and cancer in animal studies and chromosomal aberraons in

occupaonally-exposed humans [68]� Systemic toxicity following exposure via oral, inhalaon, and dermal

routes� Other eects may include fay liver degeneraon, epithelial necrozing nephris, central nervous

system depression and cyanosis [59]�

PBDD/Fs

There are also other unintenonally produced POPs that are not yet listed in the Stockholm Convenon�

The most relevant groups of unintenonally produced POPs to the sampled site in Agbogbloshie, Ghana are

polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs),5 which were analyzed in samples from this

site� Results for brominated dioxins are discussed in one subchapter together with BFRs (see 4�1�3) as they

have been known to be potenal by-products of commercial PBDE mixtures since 1986 [69]� This is similar to

the chlorinated dioxins which have been observed as impuries in PCBs, and other chlorinated chemicals�

PBDFs have also found to be formed by sunlight exposure during normal use, as well as during disposal/

recycling processes of ame-retarded consumer products [70]� PBDD/Fs are similar to the PCDD/Fs however

they have been studied less extensively than their chlorinated analogues�

PBDDs/F have been found to exhibit similar toxicity and health eects as their chlorinated analogues (PCDD/

Fs) [71-75]� They can for example aect brain development, damage the immune system and fetus or induce

carcinogenesis [75]�

“Both groups of compounds show similar eects, such as inducon of aryl hydrocarbon hydroxylase (AHH)/

EROD acvity, and toxicity, such as inducon of wasng syndrome, thymic atrophy, and liver toxicity” [73].

4 According to esmates provided by the Government of Vietnam, 400,000 people were killed or maimed by the pescide; 500,000

children were born with birth defects ranging from retardaon to spina bida; and a further two million people have suered

cancers or other illnesses, which can be also related to dioxins as impuries in the Agent Orange mixture� It is esmated that in

total, the equivalent of at least 366 kilograms of pure dioxin were dropped� 60� York, G� and H� Mick� Last ghost‘ of the Vietnam

War� 2008 April 27, 2018 [cited 2018 19-11-2018]; Available from: hps://www�theglobeandmail�com/incoming/last-ghost-of-the-

vietnam-war/arcle1057457/?page=all�

5 Synonym „brominated dioxins“ is used for this group of chemicals as well, while „dioxins“ applies for PCDD/Fs� We use both these

shorter synonyms in this report�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

In general, brominated dioxins are less regulated than chlorinated dioxins� For example, PBDD/Fs are not

currently listed under the Stockholm Convenon [53], although there is clear evidence that they contain very

similar properes to PCDD/Fs, which have been listed in Annex C of the Convenon since its origin in 2001�

In 2010, the Stockholm Convenon POPs Review Commiee recommended further assessment of PBDD/

Fs including, “releases from smelters and other thermal recovery technologies, including secondary metal

industries, cement kilns and feedstock recycling technologies” [76].

Because brominated dioxins tend to be less regulated, there is less data about their presence in the

environment� There is also very lile informaon about their presence in consumer products and food, where

they can have direct impacts on human health, including in vulnerable groups such as children and women

of childbearing age�

4.1.1.1 Dioxin-like activity of eggs measured by using bioassay analyses

Several bioanalycal tools tools are accepted by internaonal standards6 for measuring dioxin-like acvity

of environmental and food the samples� These methods are an easier and more cost-ecient opon for

screening larger quanes of environmental, food or human samples, and many studies use it to evaluate

such contaminaons by dioxins and dioxin-like substances, e�g� for food [77-80]� Five pooled egg samples in

this study were analyzed by the DR CALUX® method� The highest level in BEQs was measured in the sample

from Agbogbloshie (840 pg BEQ g-1 fat) followed by a sample from the medical waste incinerator in Accra (56

pg BEQ g-1 fat)� Also samples from the Yaoundé hospital site and the Kumasi hospital were suspected not to

meet the EU limit for PCDD/Fs + dl-PCBs (5 pg TEQ g-1 fat)�

All sample results measured by DR CALUX® method (see Table 2; total PCDD/F + dl-PCBs – DR CALUX in pg BEQ

g-1 fat) were also in the same order of magnitude in the chemical HRGC/HRMS analysis for PCDD/F + dl-PCBs

-TEQ (see Table 2; total PCDD/F + dl-PCBs in pg TEQ g-1 fat):

»Yaoundé - hospital (DR CALUX 9,6 vs chemical analysis 11,4; therefore non-compliant according EU

guidelines);

»Agbogbloshie (DR CALUX 840 vs chemical analysis 856; therefore non-compliant according EU guidelines);

» Accra - hospital (DR CALUX 56 vs chemical analysis 63; therefore non-compliant according EU guidelines);

» Kumasi - hospital (DR CALUX 5,2 vs chemical analysis 2,6; therefore above acon levels from EU guidelines)

and nally the only in the EU compliant egg samples from the

» Accra - supermarket (DR CALUX 1,2 vs chemical analysis 0,56)�

Another study conducted in Arusha, Tanzania found several composite egg samples suspected of exceeding

the EU standard of 5 pg TEQ g-1 fat with the highest BEQ concentraon found in a sample from Kwamrefu of

20�4 pg BEQ g-1 fat [77], which is higher than that measured in eggs from Yaoundé but lower than eggs from

Accra - hospital, most likely inuenced by waste incinerator ash le in the area where hens forage�

Posive DR CALUX® acvies were measured in 82% of the twenty seven egg samples from Arusha in a study

carried out in 2012 [77]� There are several small industries in Arusha and two large regional referral hospitals

[1]� Emission from these and uncontrolled burning of waste close to or within the backyards where chickens

are scavenging may be the main pathways of dioxin contaminaon for the chicken in Arusha [77]� This

situaon is similar to the places sampled in Yaoundé�

Bioassay analyses of eggs and other environmental samples could be a pathway to broader monitoring of

dioxin contaminaon in African countries�

6 Those standards are such as EC/644/2017, EPA 4435/2008, JIS 463/2009, Dutch Specie 07/2005 and the Chinese standard for Solid

waste—Screening of PCDD/Fs—Chemical acvated luciferase expression, 2018�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4.1.1.2 PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs

Three out of four free-range chicken egg samples in this study analyzed for PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs by instrumental

analysis exceeded the EU maximum level (ML) of PCDD/Fs and sum of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs, expressed as

WHO-TEQ (see Table 5) [55]� The background levels for PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs measured in chicken eggs from

a supermarket in Accra were 0�39 and 0�17 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat, respecvely� The highest level of dioxins

(661 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat) and dl-PCBs (195 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat), respecvely, were measured in eggs from

Agbogbloshie scrap yard, sampled in a slum close to Korle lagoon in the middle of the area�

The second highest levels of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in this study, 49 and 14 WHO-TEQ g-1 fat respecvely,

were measured in eggs sampled from the area close to the closed down medical waste incinerator in Accra�

There is waste incineraon ash le in that area accessible to foraging hens� However, the dioxin paern in

the eggs shows that other contaminaon sources might also be contribung dioxins (see graph at Figure

8)� The intake of dierent dioxin congeners and their bioavailability and transfer into eggs may also dier

according a recent study: “The data indicate that the bioaccumulaon rate depended on the congener; that

is, the lower chlorinated PCDDs/PCDFs congeners showed higher bioaccumulaon than the higher chlorinated

PCDDs/PCDFs congeners“ [81]�

The only sample from Yaoundé analyzed for PCDD/Fs + dl-PCBs from the vicinity of the small medical waste

incinerator and open re pit had levels of PCDD/Fs and total WHO-TEQ levels of 4�6 and 11�4 pg WHO-TEQ g-1

fat respecvely� Both levels exceeded the EU ML, by approximately two-fold� It is necessary to note that the

scenario of the sampling in this case was a bit dierent from other samples as it is a pooled sample from six

dierent households in radius of 0�3 km in all direcons from the hospital� So, it reects the overall situaon

in the area�

All samples were above the background level of WHO-TEQ measured in eggs from the supermarket by almost

5-fold (Kumasi - hospital) to 1528-fold (Agbogbloshie sample)� Dioxin levels in samples from Agbogbloshie

and Accra - hospital are among 15 egg samples with the highest ever measured levels of PCDD/Fs (see graph

at Figure 5)� Sample of eggs from Agbogbloshie with 661 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat of PCDD/Fs is the second highest

ever measured level of these chemicals in eggs globally� The highest level was found only in samples of

poultry eggs during the dioxin scandal in Belgium in 1999 [82]� It is a level almost six-mes higher than the

highest concentraon of PCDD/Fs measured in free range chicken eggs in IPEN study from 2005 in eggs

sampled in Helwan, Egypt – a site with metallurgical plants and a coal-based chemical and cement industry

(125 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat) [14]�

Almost 50 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat of PCDD/Fs in eggs from the Accra hospital site is comparable with levels in

another sample (unpublished data) from a site inuenced by a secondary aluminium smelter in Indonesia (see

Table 4), and also comparable to the highest level of PCDD/Fs in free-range eggs from Newcastle alotments

in the area where the incineraon ash from the Byker waste incinerator was used to pave the path between

alotments in 2000 [16]� It is also close to the highest level of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs measured in BEQs in pooled

egg samples from another site with impact from waste incineraon y ash in an UK farm in Bishops Cleeve

[83] (see Table 9 in this report)�

Dioxin-like PCBs were lower in comparison with PCDD/Fs in most of samples but Yaoundé – hospital sample,

where dl-PCBs were prevailing, and contributed by almost 60% to total WHO-TEQ in eggs� In all other egg

samples dl-PCBs contributed by ¼ to 1/3 of the to total WHO-TEQ value� Highest level of dl-PCBs of 195 pg

WHO-TEQ g-1 fat was measured in eggs from Agbogbloshie� The lowest dl-PCBs in free range eggs had sample

from Kumasi – hospital site, 0�86 pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat, which exceeded the background level in eggs from the

supermarket by 5-fold�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

100

125

150

175

200

225

250

Belgium (2007)

Mexico, Coatzacoalcos (2005)

Uruguay, Minas (2009)

Kenya, Dandora (2004)

Ukraine, Krivyi Ryh (2018)

Czechia, Libis (2002)

Germany (1993)

Poland (2011)

Taiwan (2005)

Uzbekistan, Chimbay (2001)

Senegal, Mbeubeuss (2005)

Germany (1993-96)

Italy - Piedmont (2012)

Russia, Igumnovo (2005)

USA, Saginaw River (2002)

Ghana - Accra - hospital (2018)

Indonesia - Kendalsari (2018)

UK - Newcastle (2002)

Portugal (2008)

Bulgaria, Kovachevo (2005)

Thailand - Samut Sakhon (2015)

France - Maincy (2004)

Egypt, Helwan (2005)

Vietnam - Bien Hoa (2011)

Germany - Rheinfelden (1992)

Ghana - Agbogbloshie (2018)

Belgium (1999)

514

661

713

450

475

500

525

550

575

600

625

650

675

700

725

Measured level in pg WHO-TEQ g-1 of fat

Figure 5: Graph showing selecon of maximum levels of PCDD/Fs measured in chicken eggs in dierent countries. Samples before

2006 are in WHO-TEQ 1998. Sources of informaon are listed in Table 4.

Country - locality

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Table 4: Overview of egg samples with highest measured levels of PCDD/Fs since 1990s.

Country Year Locality PCDD/Fs pg WHO-TEQ g-1 fat Source Comments (potenal source of contaminaon)

Belgium 2007 Not specied 20 [82] -

Mexico, 2005 Coatzacoalcos 22 [14] Petrochemical complex; hazardous waste incinerator

Uruguay 2009 Minas 23 [84, 85] Cement kiln co-incinerang PCBs

Kenya 2004 Nairobi - Dandora 23 [14] Open burning at dumpsite

Ukraine 2018 Krivyi Ryh 23 [86] Metallurgical and coke plants

Czechia 2002 Libis 23 [87] Chlor-alkali plant, dioxin contaminated site

Germany 1993 Not specied 23 [88] Either PVC burning or PCP - not clear from [88]

Poland 2011 Not specied 29 [89] PCP treated wood

Taiwan 2005 Changhua county 33 [90] Metallurgical plants (steelworks); (duck eggs)

Senegal 2005 Mbeubeuss 35 [14] Mixed waste dumpsite, potenal PCP contaminaon

Germany 1993-96 Not specied 35 [91] Not specied (free range chicken eggs)

Italy 2012-13 Piedmont region 38 [92] Secondary aluminium smelter

Russia 2005 Igumnovo 45 [14] Chlorine chemical industry area; HWI

Ghana 2018 Accra - hospital WI 49 this study Medical waste incinerator ash

Indonesia 2018 Kendalsari 49 [93] Secondary aluminium smelter

United Kingdom 2000 Newcastle 56 [16] Waste incineraon ash

Portugal 2008 Not specied 61 [144] PCP treated wood

Bulgaria 2005 Kovachevo 65 [14] Industrial area with coal burning power plants

Thailand 2015 Samut Sakhon 84 [94] Arsanal e-waste and general waste recycling; open burning

France 2004 Maincy (near Melun) 122 [15] Old waste incinerator operang between 1974-2002

Egypt 2005 Helwan 126 [14] Metallurgical workshops

Vietnam 2011 Bien Hoa 248 [95] Former US military base, dioxin contaminated site

Germany 1992 Rheinfelden 514 [96] Waste from chlor-alkali chemical plant

Ghana 2018 Agbogbloshie 661 this study E-waste and automobile scrap yard

Belgium (1999) 1999 Not specied 713 [97] Dioxin contaminaon of feed

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4.1.1.3 Hexachlorobenzene, pentachlorobenzene and hexachlorobutadiene

Among the six free-range egg samples in this study, the highest levels of PeCB and HCB were measured in eggs

from Agbogbloshie� None of the samples were above LOQ for HCBD�

The highest level of HCB observed in this study in Agbogbloshie (25 ng g-1 fat) is equal to the level found in

Kwamrefu, Tanzania with a mean value of HCB (23 ng g-1 fat) [77]� However, the study in Arusha found a much

higher maximum level of 167 ng g-1 fat in the pooled eggs sample from Kwamrefu� Lower levels of HCB in eggs

from Yaoundé – TCK and Yaoundé - hospital are comparable to those measured in Mbeubeuss, Senegal, and

the highest from Yaoundé – Etetak was comparable to levels observed in Eloor, India in an IPEN study from

2005 [14]� In general none of the observed levels was extremely high nor exceeded EU limit values� The same

applies to PeCB in eggs from this study�

4.1.2 Non-dioxin-like PCBs

Levels of 6 or 7 indicator PCB congeners represent a potenal inuence of technical mixtures of PCBs, which

is likely not the outcome of unintenonal generaon, but intenonal producon and use� The EU limit for 6

i-PCB congeners in eggs is set at 40 ng g-1 fat� The egg samples from Agbogbloshie were more than 4-mes this

limit value for i-PCBs� The reason might be that technical PCBs are present in oils from car wrecks and other

WEEE which end up at the scrap yard�

All remaining eggs samples in this study were below 40 ng g-1 fat� Levels of i-PCBs in eggs from Yaoundé were

above half of the limit set in the EU�

4.1.3 PBDD/Fs and BFRs in eggs

With the broad use of brominated ame retardants, the queson of the presence of polybrominated dibenzo-

p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in the food chain has arisen, as they are found in dierent environmental

compartments [75]� The WHO expert panel has concluded that polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PBDDs),

dibenzofurans (PBDFs) and some dioxin-like polybrominated biphenyls (dl-PBBs) may contribute signicantly

to daily human background exposure to the total dioxin toxic equivalencies (TEQs) [98]�

PBDD/Fs are not measured very oen in the environment yet, although there are some studies focused

on their presence in the African environment� Several studies have focused on PBDD/Fs in environmental

compartments at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard [31, 35, 36, 99]� This type of contaminaon is discussed in

a more detailed way in subchapter 4�2 below� Other studies focused on the presence of PBDD/Fs in e-waste

and plasc wastes in Nigeria [100, 101]� IPEN and Arnika recently found PBDD/Fs in toys from recycled e-waste

plasc sold in Nigeria [102]�

The e–waste dismantling process is a signicant source of PBDD/Fs releases into the environment as

demonstrated in several studies from e-waste dismantling sites in China [103, 104], Vietnam [105] and

Thailand [106]�

The results of analyses of free-range eggs from Cameroon and Ghana for BFRs and PBDD/Fs are summarized

in Table 5� For comparison there are also results in eggs from Wuhan, China and Samut Sakhon, Thailand from

which PBDD/Fs were found in high levels previously� The sample from Wuhan had highest ever measured

level of PBDD/Fs unl this study and analysis of eggs from Agbogbloshie�

Decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), octabromo-1,3,3-trimethylpheny-1-indan (OBIND), 2,3,4,5,6-

pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB), and pentabromotoluene (PBT) from the group of nBFRs and

tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) were measured below LOQ in all samples, and therefore they were not

included in the Table 5� This nding is in agreement with measured levels in eggs from Arusha, where these

nBFRs were not detected [77]�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Table 5: Summarized results of analyses for dierent BFRs in free-range chicken eggs samples from Cameroon and Ghana (this

study) in comparison with samples from Wuhan (China) and Samut Sakhon (Thailand). Also results for eggs from supermarkets

(background) in Accra and Beijing respecvely are included. The table also contains results of analyses for PBDD/Fs in addion to

BFRs. Sources of data from China and Thailand: [94, 107, 108]

Chemicals SPBDE SHBCD HBB BTBPE PBDD/Fs

Units ng g-1 fat pg TEQ g-1 fat

Yaoundé - TCK Quart� 0�5 124 NA NA NA

Yaoundé - hospital 2�3 379 NA NA NA

Yaoundé - Etetak Quart� 2�8 25 NA NA NA

Agbogbloshie 1258 1961 1�1 38 300

Wuhan 1054 NA < 0�1* 51 27

Samut Sakhon - SMS E 3�1 NA < 0�1* < 0�5* 16

Samut Sakhon - SMS 2-13 1�3 159 NA NA NA

Accra (supermarket) 11 < 12�6* < 0�2* < 0�3* < 8�5*

Beijing (supermarket) 0�2 NA 3�7 < 0�5* < 1�8*

*below LOQ

We have found only one study assessing PBDD/Fs in chicken eggs in countries other than China and Thailand

from which data are incorporated in the Table 5� A report from Ireland showed levels of 0�244 – 0�415 pg TEQ

g-1 fat [109]� It is two orders of magnitude lower than the level measured in free -range chicken eggs samples

from Wuhan or Samut Sakhon, and three orders of magnitude lower than in samples from Agbogbloshie�

In the egg samples from Agbogbloshie, high levels of PBDEs and HBCD were also measured (1258 and 1961

ng g-1 fat respecvely)� The level of PBDEs is comparable to e-waste dismantling sites studied by Labunska et

al� [110] as well as the municipal waste incinerator site in Wuhan (see Table 4)� A signicantly increased level

of 51 ng g-1 fat was also measured in a sample from Wuhan for BTBPE7, which is comparable to the ndings in

eggs from Agbogbloshie in this study (38 ng g-1 fat)� They exceeded the background samples by at least two

orders magnitude (see Table 4)� A similar study from Tanzania found 4-mes lower levels of BTBPE in eggs

from Arusha area� Relavely low levels of HBB were observed in eggs from Agbogbloshie and Arusha [77]�

The level of HBCD in eggs from Agbogbloshie is one of the highest ever measured, comparable to very high

levels measured in Germany (2000 ng g-1 fat) [111]� However, in eggs from Shetpe in Kazakhstan the level of

HBCD in samples was one order of magnitude higher than that measured in samples from Agbogbloshie� It

was speculated that the source of contaminaon of eggs in Shetpe were chickens feeding among car wrecks

and/or were picked by hens directly ingesng parcles of brominated materials from the deteriorated car

interiors that had entered the soil [112, 113]�This exposure pathway is somewhat similar for the eggs from

Agbogbloshie� Another potenal source of contaminaon might also be polystyrene foam used in obsolete

electronic devices or in their packaging [114]�

In two samples from Yaoundé (from TCK Quarter and from the area close to the medical waste incinerator)

relavely high levels of HBCD exceeding background levels by 10 to 30-fold were measured� They are much

lower in comparison with Agbogbloshie but comparable to levels in eggs from Samut Sakhon (Thailand),

Balkhash (Kazakhstan) or Koh Samui (Thailand) [112]� All these sites had some waste related acvies as well�

HBCD in eggs from two sites in Yaoundé also exceeded levels found in Arusha [77]� HBCD in the third sample

from Etetak Quarter is lower than highest levels found in Arusha� PBDEs were low in samples from Yaoundé,

lower than some samples measured in Arusha, and close to the minimum levels there [77]�

What is remarkable is the level of PBDEs found in pooled sample from the supermarket in Accra which

exceeded levels found in several samples of free-range chicken eggs presented in Table 5 including those

from Yaoundé�

7 BTBPE stands for 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromo-fenoxy)ethane� It is one from the family of novel brominated ame retardants used e�g�

in electronics where replaced PBDEs� Its accumulaon in the eggs highlights the need of more detailed screening of new retardants

used as alternaves replacing PBDEs for their potenal properes similar to POPs, otherwise we will connue to repeat the same

mistake and will use new POPs to replace other POPs which is not intenon of the Stockholm Convenon�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4.1.4Shortchainchlorinatedparafns(SCCPs)

Egg samples from Agbogbloshie and Accra - supermarket, are, to our knowledge, the rst egg samples from Africa

which have been analyzed for SCCPs� Measured levels in these samples were 2067, 149 and 62 ng g-1 fat in eggs from

Agbogbloshie, Yaoundé – Etetak Q� and Accra – supermarket respecvely (see also Table 2)� By way of comparison, the

EU limit for SCCPs in water is 0�4 μg l-1 (~ng g-1) [115]�

The total concentraons of SCCPs in eggs ranged from 477 to 111000 ng g-1 fat from an e-waste- polluted area in South

China [116]� Level of SCCPs in eggs from Agbogbloshie (2067 ng g-1 fat) is higher than minimum level but it is also much

lower than maximum level from the South China site�

4.1.5 Background levels of POPs in eggs

The approach to establishing background levels of POPs in eggs diers in dierent studies� It is dicult in the

current world to nd remote sites without any substanal inuence of human acvity, which is why it was

established to use supermarket eggs from large covered chicken farms (somemes called ‘baery farms’)

where poultry do not have access to contaminated soil, as background level samples [97, 118]� We sampled

chicken eggs from a supermarket in Accra from chickens raised on a farm without access to open air space in

order to obtain informaon about background levels of POPs in chicken eggs� The results of the analyses for

this sample are in Tables 2 and 5� The levels of POPs in this sample were similar for PCDD/Fs, PCBs [14, 95]

or slightly higher (e�g� for PBDEs) [108] compared to those observed in the background samples from other

studies of POPs in chicken eggs�

4.2 E-waste scrap yard

Agbogbloshie scrap yard was the focus of numerous previous studies regarding its contaminaon by POPs

and heavy metals� Most of them focused either on soil or human ssue contaminaon by dierent POPs, and

various groups of these chemicals, polyhalogenated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans in parcular� Our

study is focused on free-range chicken eggs as part of the diet for people living on the scrap yard as well as

part of local food chain� This is rst me to our knowledge where POPs were analyzed in free-range chicken

eggs from hens foraging in the area of Agbogbloshie scrap yard� We also analyzed one pooled soil sample

from the closest area to the locaon where the chicken eggs were sampled�

The results of analyses for PCDD/Fs, PCBs, HCB, PeCB, HCBD, PBDD/Fs, SCCPs, some OCPs, PBDEs, HBCD,

TBBPA and nBFRs are summarized in Table 6�

Table 6: Summarized results of analyses for various POPs in two samples from Agbogbloshie scrap yard (analyzed for this study)

compared with three samples from a small arsanal e-waste and other wastes recycling site in Samuth Sakhon, Thailand; source

[108, 118].

Locality Accra - Agbogbloshie Samut Sakhon (Thailand)

Sample ID AGB-E AGB-S-1 SMS-E A2 - soil SMS1-14

Matrix Eggs Soil Eggs Soil Sediment

Units (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 dw) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 dw) (ng g-1 dw)

PCDD/Fs (pg TEQ g-1 fat) 661 4524 84 13 12

dl-PCBs (pg TEQ g-1 fat) 195 399 12 0�001 1�5

Total PCDD/F + dl-PCBs (pg TEQ g-1 fat) 856 4924 96 13 13�5

PBDD/Fs (pg TEQ g-1)300 62 16 NA NA

HCB 25 91 4�2 1�4 <LOD

PeCB 22 181 NA 0�35 NA

HCBD < 0�2 0�15 NA NA NA

7 i-PCB 286 618 13 1�1 <LOD

6 i-PCB (EU) 168 452 11 1�1 <LOD

PCNs* < 1�4 4�3 NA NA NA

SCCPs 2067 311 NA NA NA

sum HCH < 0�6 0�10 0�31 NA <LOD

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

sum DDT 9�7 0�79 2�9 NA <LOD

PBDEs 1258 765 3�1 NA NA

sum HBCD 1961 9�8 NA NA NA

BTBPE 38 20 <0�5 NA NA

DBDPE <3�3 35 NA NA NA

HBB 1�1 1�6 <0�1 NA NA

PBT <0�2 0�15 <0�1 NA NA

TBBPA <4�2 149 NA NA NA

dw = dry weight

*Seven PCN congeners were measured: PCN 52, 56, 66, 70, 73, 74 and 75�

The most recent study by Tue et al� [99] summarized potenal health eects of high contaminaon of soils

by PCDD/Fs, PBDD/Fs and other dioxin-like chemicals: “The elevated TEQ concentraons in surface soils of

the dismantling area suggest high risk of exposure to dioxin-like chemicals and potenal dioxin-related health

eects for e-waste dismantling workers and other people frequenng the area, especially for children who may

accidentally ingest more soils and are subjected to higher per-weight exposure doses than adults. Considering

the dioxin exposure threshold of 1 pg TEQ/kg/day [119] and an average soil ingeson rate of 30 mg/day for

12 year old children [120] with an average body weight of 40 kg, TEQ concentraons in soils exceeding 1300

pg g-1 can be considered as posing risk for children exposure. Chronic exposure to PCDD/Fs resulted in high

concentraons in blood of workers in Agbogbloshie [37]. Meanwhile, despite the high contaminaon levels

of PBDFs in Agbogbloshie, the contribuon of these brominated dioxins to the total dioxin exposure risk is sll

unclear considering the potenally lower bioaccessibility and shorter half-life [121, 122]. Nevertheless, as

signicant dioxin-like acvies were detected in the brominated dioxin fracon (rather than in the chlorinated

dioxin fracon) of several randomly selected serum samples from Agbogbloshie e-waste workers, further

studies on potenal health eects of brominated dioxins in e-waste workers are warranted“ [99].

Figure 6: All the me ongoing open burning of e-waste scrap or plascs in Agbogbloshie adds dioxin

contaminaon to the levels already contained in waste imported to this site.

Photo: Marn Holzknecht, Arnika.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

PBDD/Fs measured in soil in this study are much lower than those found in samples from 2013 by Tue et

al� [99]� However, PCDD/Fs in our sample are comparably high to the maximum level of 5�2 ng TEQ g-1 dw

found by Tue et al� [99]� This study did not focus on mapping dierent soil levels, but on free-range chicken

eggs from dierent locaons in Ghana and Cameroon, so we denitely cannot say that our soil sample is

representave for Agbogbloshie� We wanted to obtain a beer characterisaon of the closest soil environment

for chickens laying eggs for the household which provided us with a sample� Tue et al� [99] also highlighted

„The concentraons of PCDD/Fs, PBDD/Fs and PBDEs in surface soil samples from the Agbogbloshie e-waste

site varied widely, ranging over one to two orders of magnitude even within the same area (Table 1). The

contaminaon levels of PCDD/Fs and PBDD/Fs were not signicantly dierent between the open burning

areas and the dismantling area (Wilcoxon’s rank sum test, p > 0.05). However, the highest concentraons

of total PCDD/Fs were found in the open burning areas (1.3–380, median 33 ng/g as opposed to 5.6–230,

median 16 ng/g), whereas the highest concentraons of total PBDD/Fs were found in the dismantling area …“.

The dioxin congener paern in the egg samples is dierent than that in the mixed soil sample� It appears that

the hens, from which we obtained the eggs, forage in a much broader area (see Figure 7)� In addion, the

balance between PBDD/Fs and PCDD/Fs, expressed in WHO-TEQs, is quite dierent in the pooled eggs (1 : 99)

compared to the composite soil sample (3 : 7)�

Figure 7: Dioxin prole of eggs and soil sample from Accra – Agbogbloshie.

0,00%

5,00%

10,00%

15,00%

20,00%

25,00%

30,00%

35,00%

Accra - Agbogbloshie (eggs)

Accra - Agbogbloshie (soil)

The POPs levels in free-range chicken eggs sampled in this study indicate that producon of food at the scrap

yard in Agbogbloshie might have serious health implicaons� Based on the results of analyses demonstrated

in Table 6 and discussed in chapter 4�1, we can say that: An adult eang just one egg from Agbogbloshie

would exceed the tolerable daily intake (TDI) as set by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in 2018 for

dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs by 220-fold [123]� One egg from Agbogbloshie would exceed the TDI suggested

by the World Health Organizaon (WHO) by thirty-fold [124]� The typical daily egg consumpon per person in

Ghana is less than one egg a day, but even eang 2�5 grams of egg a day would exceed the EFSA TDI by more

than 15-fold�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4.3 Dump sites

CREPD took samples of free-range chicken eggs at two dump sites in Yaoundé, the capital city of Cameroon�

These samples were analyzed for unintenonally produced POPs: HCB, PeCB and HCBD� We were not able to

analyse them for dioxins due to the nancial constrains of our project, however there are older egg samples

from two dumpsites in African countries from previous studies, and another sample from Yaoundé which was

taken in the surroundings of a small medical waste incinerator combined with an open ring pit for wastes�

So, the sample taken near the medical waste incinerator can be considered to reect potenal levels from

open burning of wastes in Yaoundé� The total levels of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs in the medical waste incinerator

sample was 11 pg TEQ g-1 fat, which is lower in comparison with samples from two sampled dumpsites in

Nairobi, (Dandora) and Dakar (Mbeubeuss) in 2005 where levels of 27 and 40 pg TEQ g-1 fat respecvely were

found in free-range chicken eggs [14, 125, 126]�

Table 7: Summarized results of analyses for various POPs in two samples from Yaoundé dumpsites (analyzed for this study)

compared with two samples from earlier studies of chicken egg samples from two other African locaons in Nairobi, Kenya and

Dakar, Senegal and a more recent sample from a landll site in Praeksa, Thailand. Sources [125-127].

Locality

Yaoundé-TCK

Quart�

Yaoundé-

Etetak

Quart�

Nairobi –

Dandora

(2005)

Dakar –

Mbeubeuss

(2005)

Praeksa

(Thailand)

Sample YA- 1 YA- 3 Dandora Malika PKS-EGG

Units (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat)

PCDD/Fs (pg TEQ g-1 fat) NA NA 20 36 6�5

dl-PCBs (pg TEQ g-1 fat) NA NA 7�2 3�1 2�2

Total PCDD/F + dlPCBs (pg

TEQ g-1 fat) NA NA 27 40 8�7

HCB 1�5 7�1 4�4 1�7 NA

PeCB 0�56 4�7 NA NA NA

HCBD < 0�1 < 0�1 NA NA NA

7 i-PCB 28 36 31 29 NA

6 i-PCB (EU) 27 34 25 28 NA

sum HCH 4�5 7�6 2�5 6�0 NA

sum DDT 39 36 83 23 NA

PBDEs 0�50 2�8 29 NA NA

sum HBCD 124 25 160 NA NA

Indicator PCBs, HBCD and DDT seem to be major POPs contaminants in samples of eggs from the two

dumpsites in Yaoundé� Similar levels of PCBs in eggs were observed at all the African dumpsites� Eggs near all

four African dumpsites contained DDT and three of the sites contained HBCD and PBDEs�

Signicant contaminaon by HBCD can be found in free-range chicken egg samples from the vicinity of

dumpsites in general as observed in much higher levels at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard� This is most likely

due to polystyrene or upholstery waste present at the dumpsites� Similar levels of HBCD to those found in

eggs from dumpsites in Yaoundé were found in eggs from some places in Kazakhstan from sites near rather

uncontrolled landlls or dumpsites (e�g� egg samples from Baskuduk or Balkhash – Rembaza [112])� Levels

of PBDEs are lower in comparison with HBCD and also much lower than that observed at the scrap yard

in Agbogbloshie where e-waste is major source of contaminaon by PBDEs� E-waste is not present in high

quanes at general dumpsites like those sampled in Yaoundé�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

4.4 Waste incinerators

The surroundings of three small medical waste incinerators were sampled for this report� We took samples of

free-range chicken eggs in close vicinity of all three of them and we also sampled waste incineraon residues

from two Ghana waste incinerators, ash in one case and soot in another hospital waste incinerator� All were

pooled samples as described in chapter 2�

The results of analyses for PCDD/Fs, PCBs, HCB, PeCB, HCBD, PBDD/Fs, SCCPs, some OCPs (DDT and HCHs),

PBDEs, and HBCD in samples from three waste incineraon sites in Yaoundé, Accra and Kumasi are summarized

in Table 8�

Table 8: Summarized results of analyses for various POPs in samples from medical waste incinerators areas and surrounding in

Youndé, Accra and Kumasi in eggs, ash and soot.

Locality

Yaoundé-

hospital

Accra -

hospital

Kumasi -

hospital

Accra -

hospital

Kumasi -

hospital

Sample YA- 2 KBI-E KU-E KBI-A-1 KU-A-1

Matrix Eggs Eggs Eggs Ash Soot

Units (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 fat) (ng g-1 dw) (ng g-1 dw)

PCDD/Fs (pg TEQ g-1) 4�6 49 1�7 551 2315

dl-PCBs (pg TEQ g-1) 6�8 14 0�86 28 99�5

Total PCDD/F + dl-PCBs (pg TEQ g-1) 11�4 63�1 2�60 579 2414

HCB 1�43 3�63 0�76 4�09 NA

PeCB 0�35 2�88 < 0�2 3�49 0�774

HCBD < 0�1 < 0�2 < 0�2 < 0�02 < 0�02

7 i-PCB 32�0 7�8 < 1�4 0�29 NA

6 i-PCB (EU) 30�4 7�8 < 1�2 0�29 NA

sum HCH 2�50 < 0�6 < 0�6 0�10 NA

sum DDT 22�23 79�43 0�82 0�79 NA

PBDEs 2�31 NA NA NA NA

sum HBCD 379�41 NA NA NA NA

Figure 8: Dioxin congeners paerns in eggs and ash from Accra – hospital site.

0,00%

5,00%

10,00%

15,00%

20,00%

25,00%

30,00%

35,00%

40,00%

45,00%

Accra - hospital (eggs)

Accra - hospital (ash)

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

Table 9 summarizes results of analyses for dioxins in free-range chicken eggs from places inuenced by ash

from waste incinerators or other wastes containing PCDD/Fs in dierent locaons around the world� The table

is constructed to show the potenal pathway of polluon by dioxins from wastes to soil (as career) and then

to free-range chicken eggs as the receptor� They are also compared with background levels (reference) of

PCDD/Fs in eggs from countries, mostly levels in eggs from larger farms where chickens are kept inside and

do not have access to dioxin contaminaon sources�

Table 9. Summary of levels of PCDD/Fs (in TEQs and/or BEQs) observed at dierent sites inuenced by y ash and other waste

contaminated by PCDD/Fs described in this study or in the literature.

Year(s) of

sampling

Fly ashes

(waste)

Soil/sediment

direct impact

Soil/sed�

reference Eggs

Eggs –

reference1)

Units pg TEQ g-1 dw pg TEQ g-1 fat

Thailand (WI Phuket)

2010 -

2011

3,200 -

8,000 2,700** na 6�1* 0�08[106]

China (WI Wuhan)

2014 -

2015 779 na na 12�2 0�2 [112]

UK (Bishops Cleeve)

2010 -

2011 2,500 6�5 – 11* 0�05 - 1�2

1�8; 21;

55* 0�2[5]

UK (Newcastle) [5,

113] 2000 20 - 9,500 7 – 292 na 0�4 – 56 0�2 [5]

Peru (Zapallal) [114] 2010 50 - 12,000 5 – 11 0�05 - 1�2 3�4 - 4�4 0�12 [114]

Taiwan (eggs event)

[115] 2005 na na na 32�6 0�274 [116]

Poland (henhouse)

[80] 2015 3,922 16 – 47 0�1 - 0�8 12�5 - 29�3 0�44 [80]

Ghana (Accra,

hospital) 2018 551 na 2*** [31] 49 0�39

Notes: *BEQs (total dioxin-like toxicity), ** sediment, na – not available, *** dl-PCBs + PCDD/Fs (site in Accra)”

In previous studies, processing/disposal of waste containing PCDD/Fs between 20 and 12,000 pg TEQ g-1 led

to contaminaon of the food chain (eggs or poultry meat) up to levels >20-mes higher than the suggested

EU limit for PCDD/Fs in food (2�5 pg TEQ g-1 fat)19� Levels from reference sites (background levels) in free-

range chicken eggs were exceeded up to 280-fold�

In Accra, hens have access to a site with stored ash, but also forage in a larger area which is probably not

contaminated with such high levels of dioxins� However, like other studies, the results show that incinerator

y ash with a level of dioxins (551 pg TEQ g-1 dw) well below the current internaonally set provisional limit

value for PCDD/Fs in wastes (15,000 pg TEQ g-1) leads to contaminaon of eggs at a level (49 pg TEQ g-1 fat)

exceeding EU limit by almost 20-fold�

A Swedish EPA study demonstrated that PCDD/Fs levels of 30 pg TEQ g-1 fat in an egg will be exceeded at

soil concentraons of approximately 4 to 75 ng TEQ kg-1 dw� Therefore, the European maximum level of 2�5

pg TEQ g-1 PCDD/F in fat [132] can be exceeded at levels that are ten mes lower (i�e� 0�4 and 7 ng TEQ kg-1

dw)� Based on the upper level of the range given in the Swedish EPA study and examples of a scenario with

contaminated wood waste [130], it can be concluded that applicaon of y ash and other wastes containing

levels of dioxin over 0�05 ppb in land-based applicaons can lead to unacceptable contaminaon of the local

food chain� In some other studies, even lower levels of dioxins in soils led to contaminaon of free-range

chicken eggs exceeding the EU standard for food [14, 15]� Free-range eggs can be impacted at crical levels,

and in some cases revealing a more than 20-fold exceedance of current EU limits� Locally produced food is of

great importance in developing countries and rural locaons in developed countries therefore this exposure

scenario is of parcular concern�

Free-range chicken eggs from the Accra – hospital site also exceeded the EU suggested limit for PCDD/Fs for

PCDD/Fs + dl-PCBs by more than almost 13-fold� This is most likely a consequence of access to untreated

waste incineraon residues� The waste incinerator has not been in operaon for several years but discarded

ash was found to sll be contaminated with high levels of PCDD/Fs + dl-PCBs (see photo in Figure 9)�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

The level of PCDD/Fs in waste incineraon ash from the Accra hospital was 551 pg WHO-TEQ g-1dw� This level

is higher than what was measured in ash from a medical waste incinerator in Mozambique (346 pg WHO-TEQ

g-1 dw) for which the dioxin prole is presented in the graph at Figure 10 and compared with the prole from

Accra hospital� Also, data for ash from an open re pit in the Mozambique hospital were included� The dioxin

congener paern in ash from Accra is somewhat dierent from those observed in ashes from Mozambique�

Figure 10: Comparison of PCDD/Fs congener paerns in samples of ash from Mozambique and hospital waste incinerator ash from

Accra, Ghana. In order to get equal comparison, the levels for each congener are in relave percentage from total PCDD/Fs value (in

absolute real amount). Source of informaon about PCDD/Fs in ashes from Mozambique is Peter I. K. Mochungong’s thesis [133].

0,00%

10,00%

20,00%

30,00%

40,00%

50,00%

60,00%

70,00%

80,00%

Mozambique - WI

Mozambique - open ﬁre pit

Accra - hospital WI

In comparison with observed levels of PCDD/Fs in ashes from similar waste incinerators in Pakistan [134] or

Thailand [135] the dioxin content in ash from Accra – hospital is 2 – 4 mes lower� However, it can be caused

by the age of ash at this site as some PCDD/Fs could be already diluted and released to the environment�

Figure 9: Waste incineraon ash on the ground at the closed medical waste incinerator area

in Accra most likely contaminates free range chicken by PCDD/Fs as it sll contains 551 pg

WHO-TEQ g-1 dw of these chemicals.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

5. Conclusions

Eggs sampled at the Agbogbloshie scrap yard in Ghana contained the highest level of brominated dioxins ever

measured in eggs and one of the highest ever measured levels of the ame retardant chemical, HBCD� These

eggs also contained the second highest level of chlorinated dioxins ever measured in eggs� An adult eang

just one egg from a free-range chicken foraging in Agbogbloshie area would exceed the European Food Safety

Authority (EFSA) tolerable daily intake (TDI) for chlorinated dioxins by 220-fold� Indicator PCBs in these eggs

were four-fold higher than the EU standard and dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs were 171-fold higher than the

standard� These eggs also contained very high levels of SCCPs and PBDEs and relavely high levels of other

POPs such as PeCB and HCB� These ndings raise further concerns about e-waste ‘recycling’ at Agbogbloshie

and add further informaon to already published results of high levels of POPs measured in soil, sediments,

water and human ssues�

Eggs near the medical waste incinerator in Accra, Ghana exceeded the EU dioxin limit by 13-fold and eggs

sampled near the facility in Yaoundé exceeded the limit by more than two-fold� PCBs did not exceed limits,

but signicant levels were also found� High levels of HBCD were also found in eggs from the vicinity of the

Yaoundé waste incinerator and one of the dumpsites

6. Discussion & Policy Implications:

6.1 POPs waste and e-waste

There is a clear link between current global policy that allows uncontrolled movement of e-waste and the

health and environmental crisis in areas where dumping occurs, such as Agbogbloshie� A recent report by

Basel Acon Network conrmed that Ghana is on the list of desnaons for old, used electronic devices from

Europe—devices that contain high levels of PBDEs in the plasc casings and wire insulaon [8]�

Recent research has demonstrated that brominated dioxins show up in products made from recycled e-waste

plascs� A recent study conducted by IPEN, Arnika and HEAL [102], in cooperaon with NGOs from dierent

countries, found worrying levels of brominated dioxins in toys made of recycled plascs that originated

in e-waste� Brominated dioxins, which are similarly toxic to chlorinated dioxins—one of the Stockholm

Convenon’s original “dirty-dozen”—occur with some brominated ame retardants and are also formed

when brominated ame retardants are burned� The ndings of high levels of brominated dioxins in eggs in

Agbogbloshie, the desnaon of vast amounts of used electronic products, is especially concerning, as it

illustrates a pathway for some of the most dangerous chemicals into food sources�

Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs have previously been found in high levels in egg samples from Egypt, Senegal,

Kenya, and Tanzania connected to polluon hot spots in Africa, mostly related to waste [14]� This underscores

the ndings of this current study and highlights the need to improve waste management and to control dioxin

ow in wastes�

To prevent further contaminaon of hot spots such as Agbogbloshie or the creaon of new ones in Africa,

governments must change internaonal rules to:

»Set strict limits for POPs in waste� Banned chemicals should be kept out of waste streams and recycling�

Materials that are dened as POPs waste must not be transported internaonally and must be sequestered

and destroyed according to strict protocol� The seng of strict hazardous waste limits for POPs waste

is a crical tool for prevenng their free movement across borders to developing countries, which are

lacking technologies to destroy POPs in waste in an environmentally and health protecve manner� These

stricter limits (dened as Low POP Content in the Stockholm Convenon) should be 50 mg/kg for PBDEs,

100 mg/kg for HBCD and SCCPs and 1 ug TEQ/kg for PCDD/Fs at maximum�

» Transfer cleaner technologies for destrucon of POPs and help to introduce environmentally sound

management of electronic waste in developing countries�

» Repair loopholes in e-waste technical guidelines under the Basel Convenon�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

» List brominated dioxins (PBDD/Fs) under the Stockholm Convenon�

» Connuous monitoring by governments and taking appropriate measures to deal with releases e�g�

through legislaon and seng naonal standards�

Improvements to waste management that include technical assistance are needed� Such improvements will

help establish sustainable sorng and recycling of waste and not move polluon back into the environment

where it harms workers and communies around waste sites� Non-combuson technologies used for medical

waste treatment, accompanied with sorng of waste, would prevent contaminaon of chicken eggs at

hospitals such as the sites examined in this study� Addionally, the introducon of stricter limits for dioxins in

wastes allowed to be used on surfaces without pre-treatment (at level 50 pg TEQ g-1= 0�05 ppb) will prevent

cases such as those documented in places where waste incineraon residues are not handled properly�

6.2 Healthcare waste management

The data presented in this study verify long-standing concerns over the use of small medical waste incinerators

in developing countries� The Stockholm Convenon Guidelines on Best Available Techniques and Guidance

on Best Environmental Pracces (BAT/BEP) note concerns over small hospital incinerators, stang that,

“Due to the poor design, operaon, equipment and monitoring of many exisng small hospital incinerators

these installaons cannot be regarded as employing best available techniques” [2]� None of the medical

waste incinerators in this study could be considered to employ BAT/BEP due to their design, operaon, lack

of polluon control, and lack of waste management for the ash� The high POPs levels in eggs reveal the

consequences of inadequate healthcare waste management� A hospital facility designed for healing should

not pollute the food chain or cause adverse impacts on human health and the environment�

The high levels of POPs near medical waste incinerators are consistent with observaons in other developing

countries� A survey of small healthcare facilies in Tanzania showed only 30 – 40% of the incinerators were

in good operang condions and half of them had missing chimneys, ash pits, and other problems [136]�

In Iran, 6 of 9 private hospitals that had incinerators had operaonal problems [145]� A study in Bangladesh

of occupaonal health of waste workers did not nd a single properly operang medical waste incinerator�

[145]�

Dioxin emissions from medical waste incineraon have also raised concerns in developed countries� In the US

EPA reassessment of dioxin sources in the 1990s, medical waste incinerators in the US were idened as one

of the largest dioxin sources in the country [1]� Medical waste incineraon is a major dioxin source, primarily

due to combuson of PVC plasc which is a dominant source of organically bound chlorine� The links between

medical waste incineraon and dioxin formaon in the US smulated a resoluon from the American Public

Health Asssociaon which, “Urges all health care facilies to explore ways to reduce or eliminate their use of

PVC plascs“ [ 137]�

Instead of trying to improve dioxin-producing technologies such as small medical waste incinerators, a strategy

that prevents dioxin formaon is more cost eecve and consistent with Stockholm Convenon objecves�

This includes changing the hospital waste stream by moving away from PVC products, implemenng robust

waste segregaon since most hospital waste is not infecous, and implemenng use of non-combuson

methods such as autoclaves for infecous waste� The Stockholm Convenon Guidelines on Best Available

Techniques and Guidance on Best Environmental Pracces describes use of source reducon, segregaon,

recycling, training, and use of autoclaves and other non-combuson methods [2]� The Guidelines note that

non-combuson techniques such as autoclaving, “do not result in the formaon and release of chemicals

listed in Annex C and should therefore be given priority consideraon for their ulmate eliminaon.” These

methods have been implemented as described by WHO, Health Care Without Harm and others [4, 138, 139]�

Work to implement sustainable healthcare waste management has been underway for some me in

developing and transion countries� In Africa, this includes sustainable procurement (Tanzania, Zambia)

[140], non-combuson waste treatment pilot project (Tanzania)[6], and non-incineraon healthcare waste

management and mercury-free medical devices (Ghana, Madagascar, Tanzania, Zimbabwe) among others�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

6.3 Environmental, food and human monitoring

This and previous studies also show on gaps in monitoring of POPs and/or EDCs in environmental, food, and

wildlife/human in general� This leads us to following suggesons:

»Use internaonal standards for monitoring of dioxins in food (e�g� eggs) and mandatory number of analysis

per year per crical food items�

»Use internaonal accepted standards (such as as EC/644/2017); [141] for the analysis of dioxins/PCBs in food/

feed using high-throughput screening tests (such as DR CALUX) as well as chemical conrmave analysis�

» Use screening tests (such as DR CALUX) which allows an easier, cost-ecient and high capacity tesng

of not only polychlorinated dioxins, but also here for polybrominated dioxins which are high relevant to

e-waste�

» Recommend using high-through-put and cost ecient screening tests (such as DR CALUX® method) for

blood and human milk for polyhalogenated (chlorinated and brominated) dioxins/furans for wildlife and

humans [142, 143]�8

»It is immediately necessary to evaluate also the most toxic mode of acons such as the well described

eets of endocrine disrupng chemicals, “hormone-like” of e�g� PBDEs (female hormone estrogen-like,

inhibion male hormone-like), TBBPA (thyroid transport competor) and therefor related risks of such

e-waste dismantling sites for wildlife and humans�

7. Aknowledgements

IPEN, Arnika and CREPD gratefully acknowledge the nancial support provided by the Government Sweden,

Global Greengrants Fund and oher donors that made the producon of this document possible�

The expressed views and interpretaons herein shall not necessarily be taken to reect the ocial opinion

of any of the instuons providing nancial support� Responsibility for the content lies enrely with IPEN,

Arnika and CREPD�

8. Abbreviations

BDS – BioDetecon Systems (laboratory in Netherlands)

BEQ – bioanalycal equivalent

CALUX - chemically acvated luciferase gene expression

BTBPE - 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromo-fenoxy) ethane

DDD – dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane (a metabolite of DDT)

DDE - dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (a chemical compound formed by the loss of hydrogen chloride from

DDT)

DDT – dichlorodiphenyltricholoroethane (pescide)

dl-PCBs – dioxin-like PCBs

dw – dry weight

EDCs – endocrine disrupng chemicals

EPA – Environmental Protecon Agency

EU – European Union

GC – gas chromatography

8 It is important to noce that the DR CALUX method also includes already the brominated dioxins and biphenyls (PBDD/Fs and

PBBs) without any further costs, while the chemical analyses needs here an additonal expensive analysis� Globally, at the moment

only a handfull chemical laboratories are available to perform this addional chemical analysis in roune for brominated dioxins

and biphenyls (PBDD/Fs and PBBs), while many laboratories already perform the DR CALUX® method� Such easy, low cost and high-

capacity analysis tools are urgently needed in such cases with a wide-spread contaminaon of brominated dioxins/biphenyls (PBDD/

Fs/PBBs) in e-waste, products from recycled e-waste plasc, soil, feed/food and human biomonitoring (blood, mother milk)�

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

GPC - gel permeaon chromatography

GPS - global posioning system

HBB - hexabromobenzene

HBCD - hexabromocyclododecane

HCB – hexachlorobenzene

HCBD - hexachlorobutadiene

HCHs – hexachlorocyclohexanes (pescides and their metabolites)

HRGC-HRMS – high resoluon gas chromatography – high resoluon mass spectroscopy

IARC - Internaonal Agency for Research on Cancer

i-PCBs – indicator PCB congeners

IPEN – Internaonal POPs Eliminaon Network

LOD – limit of detecon

LOQ – limit of quancaon

MAC – maximum acceptable (allowable) concentraon

ML – maximum level

MRL – maximum residue level

NA – not analyzed

na - not available

nBFRs – novel brominated ame retardants

ndl-PCBs – non-dioxin-like PCBs

NGO – non-govermental organizaon (civil society organizaon)

NIP – Naonal Implementaon Plan

NOAEL - no observed adverse eect level

OBIND – octabromotrimethylfenylindane

OCPs – organochlorinated pescides

PBDD/Fs – polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans

PBDEs – polybrominated diphenyl ethers

PBEB – pentabromoethylbenzene

PBT – pentabromotoluene

PCBs – polychlorinated biphenyls

PCDD/Fs – polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans

PCDDs – polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins

PCDFs – polychlorinated furans

PeCB - pentachlorobenzene

POPs – persistent organic pollutants

SC – Stockholm Convenon on Persistent Organic Pollutants

SCCPs – short chain chlorinated parans

SOP - standard operang procedures

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in Eggs: Report from Africa

TBBPA – tetrabromobisphenol A

TEF – toxic equivalency factor(-s)

TEQ – toxic equivalent

UNDP – United Naons Development Programme

UNEP – United Naons Environment Programme

UPOPs – unintenonally produced POPs

US EPA – United States Environmental Protecon Agency

WHO-TEQ – toxic equivalent dened by WHO experts panel in 2005

WI – waste incinerator and/or waste incineraon

ww – wet weight

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Delivering Multiple Benefits through the Sound Management of Chemicals and Waste - A STAP Advisory Document

Technical Report

Full-text available

Dec 2020

The production, use, and management of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), mercury, ozone-depleting substances (ODS) are major drivers of biodiversity loss, climate change, land degradation, and impact on international waters. Chemicals and waste are also interlinked with socio-economic issues, including human health, food security, poverty, gender equality, and economic improvements. Hence, the sound management of chemicals will deliver multiple environmental and socio-economic benefits. This STAP advisory report presents some of the interlinkages between the goals of the chemicals and waste focal area and those of other GEF focal areas, as well as the interactions with other environmental and socio-economic issues. It also discusses systems thinking as an approach for developing chemicals and waste projects that address interlinkages, delivers multiple benefits, and lead to transformative changes. Advice on how to effectively capture the multiple benefits from chemicals and waste interventions and account for contributions towards broader chemicals and waste and sustainability objectives are also presented.

Brominated dioxins (PBDD/Fs) in free range chicken eggs from sites affected by plastic waste

Article

Full-text available

Nov 2021

In this research, fifteen pooled samples of free-range chicken eggs (from 14 hot spots around the world) and two reference samples from supermarkets (see Table 1) were analyzed for PBDD/Fs. All egg samples were also analyzed for PCDD/Fs and dl PCBs by HRGC-HRMS. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that sub-standard settings of e-waste plastic disposal and metal smelting plants are growing sources of PBDD/Fs releases to the environment in developing countries. PBDD/Fs are also shown to contribute significantly to overall dioxin toxicity of eggs. All the sources of these toxic substances and their precursors must be eliminated or strictly controlled at national, regional and global level.

Environmental Impact of Robotics: Ethical Concerns and Legal Alternatives

Chapter

Jan 2021

¨Avoiding Blind Spots: Promoting Circular and Fair Business Models¨ (Circle Economy-EEB-FTAO report, various authors)

Research

Full-text available

Dec 2020

Sergi Corbalan

Joint report by Circle Economy, European Environmental Bureau and Fair Trade Advocacy Office to shed light on different type of blind spots of Circular Economy and to give recommendations to policy-makers, public procurers and private sector.

Environmental Impact of Robotics: Ethical Concerns and Legal Alternatives

Chapter

Jan 2021

Dioxins in feed and food - a never ending story

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2020

At the beginning of the first dioxin crises at the end of the last century, we did not anticipate that they would continue to pop up as a problem in the world for so long and that so many unexpected dioxin sources existed in the feed and food sector (see the figure on page 46). Over time, we have learned many lessons about how dioxins can enter the feed/food chain through many different industrial processing steps occurring in many countries. There have been many multi-national dioxin crises with global implications (Behnisch 2005, 2011; Codex 2017, 2018; EFSA 2012; Fink-Gremmels 2012; Motarjemi 2013; Petrlik 2018, 2019; Weber 2018; Malisch 2017; McEvoy 2016; Vugt-Lussenburg 2013). During the first few dioxin crises, the individual countries where they occurred had not yet established national legal dioxin limits. After the EU guidelines appeared in 2001, regular monitoring programs (by national or industrial associations) using screening and confirmatory analysis were instituted, resulting in the detection of many new and unexpected dioxin/PCBs incidents that led to international feed/food scandals. Other non-EU countries either set up strict limits (e.g. USA, see FDA 2019) or used EU standards as an import benchmark (e.g. Russia, China). From these first experiences, different formation and distribution patterns of dioxins and dioxin-like compounds (e.g. PCBs, PCNs, PBDD/Fs, see Behnisch 2001) in the environment and food chain were identified. At the beginning of nearly every dioxin/PCB crisis, the source of contamination was unknown and the original source was detected only by the intensive detective efforts of food dioxin experts without the benefit of cooperation with environmental experts in most cases. The surprising and unforeseen impact of many kinds of dioxin contamination sources (e.g. PCP-treated wood as a fuel source for feed drying, PCB oils mixed with plant oils, several minerals from mining, all kinds of thermal processes with dioxin precursors, waste burning, or pesticides; see Behnisch 2005, Codex 2017 and 2018, Malisch 2018, Weber 2018), which also play a role in feed/food recycling, has been to cause further dioxin scandals affecting the global feed and food chain, making it very difficult to predict and protect populations from future dioxin scandals.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDES) concentrations in soil and plants around municipal dumpsites in Abuja, Nigeria

Article

Feb 2021
ENVIRON POLLUT

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are listed as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Stockholm Convention. It has been established that PBDEs may be released into the environment during improper handling and disposal of e-waste and other products containing PBDEs that is prevalent in developing countries. This research work assessed the status of PBDE contamination at dumpsites in Nigeria. Soil and edible plant samples were collected from the dumpsites and control sites for analysis. The concentrations of ∑7PBDE in the topsoils around the dumpsites at 0-15 cm depth ranged from 112 to 366 ng/g dry weight (dw) while that of the topsoil of the control site 500 m from the dumpsite ranged from 26.8 to 39.7 ng/g dw. These high concentrations stem likely from open burning of waste including electronic waste on the landfills. Plant samples (bentgrass, spinach, tomatoes, pumpkin and sweet potatoes) around the dumpsites were found to be contaminated by PBDEs with levels ranging from 25.0 to 60.5 ng/g dw in plant roots and from 8.45 to 32.2 ng/g dw in plant shoots for ∑7PBDE. This suggests that consumption of vegetables by humans and ingestion of contaminated soils and feed by chickens and cows can transfer PBDEs into the human food chain around the dumpsites. The comparison of PBDE levels in soils and the PBDE levels in chicken eggs from the former study indicate that PBDE levels in the soils are sufficient to explain the levels in the chicken eggs with a reasonable carry-over rate for PBDEs of 0.28 on average. The PBDE contamination in the soil was sufficient to result in a relevant exposure of humans via accumulation in eggs. The study shows that a better management of end-of-life products containing PBDEs is needed to reduce PBDE exposure risk in Africa.

Medical waste: Current challenges and future opportunities for sustainable management

Article

Full-text available

Feb 2021
CRIT REV ENV SCI TEC

Countries worldwide are struggling to develop strategies and infrastructure for appropriate disposal of the increasing medical waste generated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This study examines the available knowledge and current practices in medical/ healthcare waste management worldwide, particularly in countries with transitional economies, including the dependence of medical waste generation rate on various socioeconomic and environmental parameters. Here, we conducted a meta-analysis of medical and healthcare waste management practices in 78 countries. We identified impediments and challenges facing the integration of medical waste management into a prospective circular economy according to statistical correlations with human development index (HDI), life expectancy (LE), healthcare expenditure (HE) per capita of gross domestic product (GDP), and environmental performance index (EPI). The results highlight the importance of knowledge and awareness of best practices for infection and injury prevention for waste management among workers. An average of 38.9% of medical waste was segregated for proper management, and only 41% of workers were trained in-service for medical waste disposal. Plastic materials constituted approximately 35% of medical waste, presenting an opportunity for sustainable resource recovery and recycling. It is imperative for all countries to adopt environmentally sustainable management of medical waste to prevent catastrophic stockpiling of infectious waste during and after pandemics. Additionally, we present an outline for future studies on medical waste generation rate and various socioeconomic and environmental parameters that should be investigated in future work to promulgate an inventory of the database for sustainable management of medical/healthcare waste.

Plastic waste flooding Indonesia leads to toxic chemical contamination of the food chain

Technical Report

Full-text available

Dec 2019

After China closed its doors to plastic waste imports in 2018, developed countries sharply increased exports of non-recyclable plastic waste to Indonesia and other Southeast Asian countries. As a result, Indonesia’s plastic waste imports doubled to 320,000 tonnes in 2018 compared to 2017. Based on observations by Ecoton and Nexus3, between 25% to 50% of the plastic wastes imported by Indonesian plastic and paper recycling companies were mismanaged. An analysis of free-range chicken eggs sampled at Tropodo and Bangun, two sites in Indonesia where imported plastic wastes are dumped and used for fuel or burned to reduce volume, revealed: • Significant levels of very hazardous chemicals including dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), which are all regulated globally under the Stockholm Convention. • The second-highest level of dioxins in eggs from Asia ever measured was found in samples collected near a tofu factory in Tropodo that burns plastic wastes for fuel. • The dioxin level in the Tropodo eggs (200 pg TEQ g-1 fat) is similar to the highest recorded level of dioxins in eggs from Asia (248 pg TEQ g-1 fat) which occurred at the Bien Hoa site in Vietnam, a former US Army airbase where the soil was contaminated by historic Agent Orange use. • An adult eating just one egg from a free-range chicken foraging in the vicinity of the tofu factory in Tropodo would exceed the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) tolerable daily intake (TDI) for chlorinated dioxins by 70-fold. • Eggs collected near a rural plastic waste dump site in Bangun were contaminated by PFOS at levels comparable to highly industrialized areas in Europe. An adult eating just one egg per week from a free-range chicken foraging in the vicinity of the Bangun dump site would exceed the proposed EFSA tolerable weekly intake of PFOS by approximately 1.3-fold. • Eggs from Tropodo and Bangun contained SCCPs and PBDEs, which are flame retardant chemicals used in plastics. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate food chain contamination in Southeast Asia, with high levels of hazardous chemicals as a consequence of waste mismanagement and poor controls on plastic waste trade.

POPs contamination at ‘recycling’ and metallurgical site in Thailand

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2018

This study evaluates the results of the analyses for Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in the free-range chicken eggs in a vicinity of the artisanal recycling workshops in Samut Sakhon, a neighbouring province of Bangkok, Thailand. Free-range chicken eggs were used for monitoring levels of POPs contamination at certain places in many previous studies. Eggs have been found to be sensitive indicators of POPs contamination in soils or dust and are an important exposure pathway from soil pollution to humans. Thus eggs from contaminated areas can significantly lead to POPs exposures that exceed thresholds for the protection of human health. Chickens and eggs might, therefore, be ideal ‘active samplers’ and indicator species for evaluation of the POPs contamination level of sampled areas, particularly by polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins a and furans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Based on this assumption, the free-range chicken eggs were collected in February 2015 and used in this study as one of the monitoring tools, to analyze for the selected POPs, i.e. PCDD/Fs, PCBs, polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans (PBDD/Fs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). This study discovers serious contamination within the food chain by various POPs in Samut Sakhon and the level of these chemicals measured in the eggs is the second highest level ever measured in chicken eggs globally7. We also looked at levels of POPs found in other environment compartments sampled in Samut Sakhon in addition to free range chicken eggs. The data and analysis of free-range chicken eggs was also already summarized in broader context of samples from other industrial hot spots in Thailand, as well as POPs found in samples of soils, sediments and biota from the same sites within the joint EARTH and Arnika project ‘‘Increasing Transparency in Industrial Pollution Management through Citizen Science’’.

High levels of PCDD/Fs around sites with waste containing POPs demonstrate the need to review current standards

Article

Full-text available

Aug 2018

The case of use of mixed fly ash and bottom ash from the Byker waste incinerator (WI) for paving footpaths between allotments in Newcastle, UK between 1994 and 1999 led to serious contamination of free range poultry by PCDD/Fs1,2. It also raised awareness about use of WI residues contaminated by PCDD/Fs. Similar cases of “Kieselrot” in Germany led to the establishment of the first standards for PCDD/Fs limits in soil3. Both cases demonstrate impacts of uncontrolled use of waste containing significant levels of PCDD/Fs in scenarios with sensitive uses. It is now broadly assumed that tighter regulatory controls over wastes since that time would prevent any repeat of such incidents. However, recently obtained information about transfers of WI residues challenges this assumption. So, we asked the question, ‘are current legislative and regulatory measures to control movement of PCDD/Fs via waste transfers effective in preventing contamination incidents? Conclusions and Recommendations: All described cases in this study demonstrate that waste containing PCDD/Fs below the currently established provisional POPs limit (LPCL) of 15 ppb (15,000 pg TEQ/g) can lead to significant contamination around sites where the waste is reprocessed or disposed of in a way that doesn’t destroy or irreversibly transforms PCDD/Fs or DL PCBs contained in the waste as required by Article 6 of the Stockholm Convention. Even waste above ~ 0.02 / 0.05 ppb can contaminate soil if used on surface without any treatment. Based on the findings of this and other studies, we recommend the establishment of a new limit (LPCL) for PCDD/Fs in wastes at 1 ppb, and to limit use of wastes containing PCDD/Fs + DL PCBs above 0.05 ppb on surface soils without pre-treatment.

Source characterization and risk of exposure to atmospheric polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in Ghana

Article

Full-text available

Jun 2018
ENVIRON SCI POLLUT R

With recent evidence that persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are emerging in environmental media in some developing countries that otherwise have sparing production and usage history, it has become important to identify such contemporary source factors of PCBs and the risks this may pose, in line with the global consensus on POP management and elimination. The present study investigated contaminations from atmospheric PCBs in Ghana, deciphered source factors, and accessed risk of exposure to dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs). Atmospheric PCBs were monitored by deployment of PUF-disk passive air samplers (PAS) at several sites across Ghana for 56 days. Atmospheric ∑190PCB concentration in Ghana ranged from 0.28 ng/m³ in Kumasi to 4.64 ng/m³ at Agbogbloshie, a suburb in Accra noted for informal electronic waste (e-waste) recycling activities. As high as 11.10 ng/m³ of PCB concentration was measured in plumes from uncontrolled open burning of e-wastes at Agbogbloshie. Applying statistical source characterization tools, it emerged that e-wastes were a major contributor to the environmental burden of atmospheric PCBs in Ghana. The risk of DL-PCB toxicity via inhalation in the Agbogbloshie area was 4.2 pg TEQ/day, within similar order of magnitude of an estimated risk of 3.85 pg TEQ/day faced by e-waste workers working averagely for 8 h per day. It is suggested that elimination of e-waste sites would help to significantly reduce PCB-related toxicity issues in Ghana. Graphical abstractᅟ

Contamination of chicken eggs from Helwan in Egypt by dioxins, PCBs and hexachlorobenzene

Technical Report

Full-text available

Apr 2005

The free-range chicken eggs collected in Helwan showed one of the highest levels of dioxins ever measured in chicken eggs. In fact, to our knowledge, they showed the third highest level of dioxins in eggs ever documented. Dioxins in eggs from Helwan exceeded the European Union (EU) limit by more than 40-fold. The level of PCBs in the eggs exceeded the proposed EU limit by almost 5-fold. In addition, significant levels of HCB were also observed. To our knowledge, this study represents the first data about U-POPs in chicken eggs from Egypt. Potential existing dioxin sources in Helwan include: the metallurgical industry, uncontrolled burning of the wastes and/or cement kilns. Since the pattern of dioxins in eggs was dominated by furans (PCDF), it is likely that the sources came mainly from combustion. One clue about the possible source is revealed by comparing the data in this study with data from Korea. The dioxin congener pattern for the metallurgy industry (steel as well as lead production) in Korea is similar to the pattern observed in this study from Helwan.. , This suggests that the steel industry is a significant source of dioxins seen here, though other combustion sources cannot be excluded. The toxic substances measured in this study are slated for reduction and elimination by the Stockholm Convention which holds its first Conference of the Parties beginning 2 May 2005. Egypt is a Party to Convention since it ratified the Treaty in May 2003. The Convention mandates Parties to take specific actions aimed at eliminating these pollutants from the global environment. We view the Convention text as a promise to take the actions needed to protect Egyptian and global public’s health and environment from the injuries that are caused by persistent organic pollutants, a promise that was agreed by representatives of the global community: governments, interested stakeholders, and representatives of civil society. We call upon Egyptian governmental representatives and all stakeholders to honor the integrity of the Convention text and keep the promise of reduction and elimination of POPs. Recommendations 1) More POPs monitoring in Egypt is needed as even basic data about U-POPs releases are missing; 2) More publicly accessible data about U-POPs releases from industry complexes in developing countries and countries with economies under transition are needed to address these sources of U-POPs properly; 3) Stringent limits for U-POPs in waste as well as air emissions should be introduced into both national legislation and under international treaties. 4) The Helwan region needs to be addressed specifically as a large source of industrial pollution including POPs.

Toward a More Sustainable Trajectory for E-Waste Policy: A Review of a Decade of E-Waste Research in Accra, Ghana

Article

Full-text available

Jan 2017
Int J Environ Res Publ Health

Global flows of e-waste from the Global North to the Global South continue to damage local environments and harm human health. Weak e-waste regulations and limited use of safety measures for e-waste workers in Accra, Ghana, foster an exploitative environment within the industry, and pose health risks for those working and living near e-waste processing sites. This paper presents an integrated review of over 40 e-waste studies specific to Accra, with particular emphasis on the well-studied e-waste processing site in Agbogbloshie, and synthesizes the existing research base across interdisciplinary themes of human health, environmental health, globalization, trade and informalization, and public policy. Despite significant international attention to Accra’s e-waste problem, loopholes within international environmental regulations and treaties provide few incentives and resources for Ghana to strengthen protections for human and environmental health. After a decade of e-waste research in Accra, the crisis continues to intensify; we present a renewed vision for sustainable e-waste policy reform in Ghana and beyond.

Ideological traces in Ghana's urban plans: How do traces get worked out in the Agbogbloshie, Accra?

Article

Nov 2018
HABITAT INT

Neoliberalism, rights to the city, and sustainable development are systems of ideas competing for the attention of policymakers and citizens worldwide. Analyzing Ghana's key urban reports, we produce a heat map of the intensity and fragility of ideas concerning the urban poor. We employ the Agbogbloshie informal settlement as a case study to explore conflicts among diverse planning goals: urban entrepreneurialism, environmental protection, formalization of parts of the informal economy, the reframing of citizenship, and settlement upgrading. Decongestion exercises, shack demolitions, and threats of relocation are strategies employed to restore order, but the settlement's regeneration is beset by transience and piecemeal actions. We introduce hypocrisy as a theoretical analytical perspective to call into question pro-poor urban planning interventions as a way of responding to continuous ambivalent planning measures and framing. Hypocrisy prompts an alternative focus on inconsistencies and contradictions in the planning system.

The state of POPs in Ghana- A review on persistent organic pollutants: Environmental and human exposure

Article

Nov 2018
ENVIRON POLLUT

Polychlorinated biphenyls and chlorinated paraffins in home-produced eggs from an e-waste polluted area in South China: Occurrence and human dietary exposure

Article

Apr 2018

The levels of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and short/median-chain chlorinated paraffins (S/MCCPs) in 68 home-produced eggs collected in 2013 and 2016 from an electronic-waste (e-waste) site in South China were measured and the human dietary exposure to these two classes of contaminants via egg consumption was calculated. The levels of PCBs, SCCPs, and MCCPs varied from 236 to 8870 ng/g lipid weight (lw), 477 to 111,000 ng/g lw, and 125 to 91,100 ng/g lw, respectively. There are no significant differences in the levels of PCBs, SCCPs, and MCCPs between 2013 and 2016 (p > 0.05). The congener profiles of PCBs and MCCPs were similar to each other between 2013 and 2016; however, the homologue profiles of SCCPs were different. The Toxic Equivalent Quantities (TEQs) of ∑DL-PCBs and the levels of ∑ICES-6 PCBs strongly exceeded the limits set by EU Regulation 1259/2011 (2.5 pg World Health Organization-TEQ2005 g-1 lw for DL-∑PCBs and 40 ng/ g lw for ∑ICES-6 PCBs). The estimated daily intakes (EDI) of PCBs, SCCPs, and MCCPs by adults and children ranged between 5.57 and 1100, 11.8 and 11,900, and 3.62 and 11,400 ng/kg bw/d, respectively. PCBs pose serious health risks for local residents, especially for children, due to the high ratios of EDI (68% in 2013 and 70% in 2016 for adults and 100% for children) in excess of the exposure limits.

Hexabromocyclododecane in polystyrene packaging: A downside of recycling?

Article

Feb 2018
CHEMOSPHERE

While there are no regulatory fire safety obligations for polystyrene (PS) when used as packaging material, concerns exist that such packaging material may contain the flame retardant hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD) as a result of uncontrolled recycling activities. To evaluate these concerns, we collected 50 samples of PS packaging materials from the UK and 20 from Ireland. HBCDD was detected in 63 (90%) of samples, with concentrations in 4 samples from Ireland exceeding the EU's low POP concentration limit (LPCL) of 0.1% above which articles may not be recycled. Moreover, 2 further samples contained HBCDD >0.01%. While our samples were obtained in the 12 month period prior to the March 2016 introduction of the EU's 0.01% concentration limit above which articles may not be placed on the market, our data suggest that continued monitoring is required to assess compliance with this limit value. Ratios of α vs. γ-HBCDD in our EPS packaging samples (average = 0.63) exceeded significantly (p = 0.025) those in EPS building insulation material samples (average = 0.24) reported previously for Ireland. This shift towards α-HBCDD in packaging EPS is consistent with the additional thermal processing experienced by recycled PS and suggests the source of HBCDD in PS packaging is recycled PS insulation foam. This is of concern owing to the higher bioavailability and lower metabolic clearance of α-HBCDD compared to the β- and γ-isomers.

Occurrence, composition, source, and regional distribution of halogenated flame retardants and polybrominated dibenzo- p -dioxin/dibenzofuran in the soils of Guiyu, China

Article

Sep 2017

Guiyu, China, is well-known for the crude disposal of electronic waste (EW) and severe persistent organic pollutants (POPs). Therefore, in this study, the occurrence, composition, and source of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), 2,2′,4,4′,5,5’-hexabromobiphenyl (BB153), some novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs), Dechlorane Plus (DP) and polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans (PBDD/Fs) in farmland soils covering Guiyu were studied. In EW disposal area soils, PBDEs were the most abundant FRs, with concentrations of 13–1014 ng g⁻¹. The primary PBDE sources were technical Penta- and Deca-BDE mixtures in northern and southern Guiyu, respectively. The levels of BB153 were relatively low, possibly because it has been banned in the 1970s. The concentrations of hexabromobenzene (HBB) were 0.048–3.3 ng g⁻¹, while pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB) was almost not detected in the soils. Two alternatives to commercial PBDEs, decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) and 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy) ethane (BTBPE), were the primary NBFRs, with concentrations of 1.8–153 ng g⁻¹ and 0.43–15 ng g⁻¹, respectively. DP was another primary FR, with concentrations of 0.57–146 ng g⁻¹. Moreover, syn-DP and anti-DP isomers were not stereoselectively decomposed during the EW disposal process and were therefore present in their original fractions in the soils. The levels of PBDD/Fs in EW disposal area soils were 2.5–17 pg TEQ g⁻¹. 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpBDF and OBDF were the dominant congeners, mainly derived from processing, pyrolysis and combustion of BFRs. The regional distribution of pollutants was shown to be related to the disposal manner of EW, with their open thermal disposal tending to release more highly brominated compounds such as BDE209, DBDPE, and 1,2,3,4,6,7,8-HpBDF. Additionally, some riverbank sites were heavily polluted because of nearby point sources, downwind Simapu (SMP) town without EW disposal activity was also contaminated by these pollutants.