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Abstract

Background/Aim: E-waste recycling at Agbogbloshie consists mainly of collection, dismantling and burning of electronic waste. Processes involved are highly informal and physically demanding, consisting of varying levels of lifting, torso bending and twisting, prolonged sitting and standing. These activities are likely to cause musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Thus far, studies on adverse health effects of e-waste recycling have focused ostensibly on chemicals and/or particulate matter. This study investigated the prevalence of MSDs among e-waste workers at Agbogbloshie, Accra Ghana; one of the world’s largest e-waste recycling sites. Methods: The Cornell musculoskeletal discomfort questionnaire was used to obtain information on the occurrence of MSDs in 11 specific body regions of 163 e-waste workers. Descriptive statistics was used to summarize information on MSD prevalence. Chi-squared and regression analyses were used to examine relationships between e-waste recycling job categories and MSD frequency and severity. Results: The study sample consisted of 70 collectors, 73 dismantlers and 20 burners working an average of 6 days per week, for an average duration of 9.95  2.43 hours per day. Analysis indicated an overall MSD prevalence of 90% among e-waste workers. The 6 body regions where MSDs were most commonly reported included the lower back (65%), knee (39%), shoulder (37%), upper arm (30%), lower leg (27%) and neck (26%) respectively. Significant associations between e-waste job category and the frequency (p = 0.032) and severity (p = 0.005) of MSDs were found. For collectors the odds of developing knee and lower leg MSDs were 0.08(0.01-0.67) and 0.17(0.07-0.43) respectively compared to dismantlers. For dismantlers, the odds of developing MSD in the upper arm was 0.08(0.01-0.67) compared to burners. Conclusions: E-waste workers in Agbogbloshie experience an alarmingly high prevalence of MSDs. Reducing the occurrence of MSDs among e-waste workers will require effecting change through contextually and locally adapted ergonomic interventions.
Processes and challenges associated with informal electronic
waste recycling at Agbogbloshie, a suburb of Accra, Ghana
Augustine A. Acquah
1
, Clive D'Souza
2
, Bernard Martin
2
, John Arko-Mensah
1
, Afua Amoabeng Nti
1
,
Lawrencia Kwarteng
1
, Sylvia Takyi
1
, Isabella A. Quakyi
1
, Thomas G. Robins
3
, Julius N. Fobil
1
1. Department of Biological Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, School of Public
Health, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
2. Center for Ergonomics, Department of Industrial and Operations Engineering, University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA.
3. Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor,
USA.
Abstract: Electronic waste (e-waste) is a worldwide problem in terms of increasing production rate in the
global waste stream. Its recycling is known to be associated with adverse health outcomes. The recycling
site at Agbogbloshie is a major e-waste recycling hub which presents enormous health threats to the
residents in this community as a result of exposure to complex mixtures of chemicals associated with the
poor work methods employed. This paper describes the processes involved in e-waste recycling at
Agbogbloshie and discusses some of the associated health and psychosocial challenges. Direct field
observations and in-depth interviews of eight e-waste workers were conducted from November, 2017 to
December, 2017. Results from a thematic analysis of the data gathered; suggest that inappropriate recycling
methods, financial constraints, and the high physical demands of e-waste recycling work were associated
with adverse musculoskeletal health conditions among the workers. A more systematic ergonomic study is
currently being undertaken to quantify the associations between physical work exposures and worker
musculoskeletal health among e-waste workers in Agbogbloshie. Further studies that focus on locally
adapted ergonomic interventions for effective recycling of e-waste and reducing the health risk to workers
are needed.
INTRODUCTION
Technological advancement and high demand for new
electronic and electrical equipment have resulted in high
turnover and shorter lifespan for these equipment. This
phenomenon has presented the world with a huge burden of
managing end-of-life electrical products. Tons of e-waste are
dumped in developing countries and eventually become a
problem to manage (Bakhiyi et al., 2018). A greater part of the
challenge in managing e-waste in developing countries is lack
of appropriate recycling methods and technology required for
efficient extraction of the required constituents from old or
discarded electronics, while minimising occupational health
risk to e-waste recycling workers (Zhang & Xu, 2016).
In most developing countries, those engaged in recycling
activities often belong to vulnerable groups in society (Zhang
& Xu, 2016), and their livelihood is fully dependent on
earnings from e-waste recycling activities (Amankwaa, 2013).
Agbogbloshie is one of the world’s largest e-waste recycling
sites creating a potential for numerous health challenges.
Agbogbloshie has served as a major e-waste hub for over a
decade (Davis et al., 2018) with an estimate of over 171,000
tons of e-waste processed annually (Prakash et al., 2010). The
fact that rudimentary methods are used for e-waste processing
presents occupational health and environmental problems.
This paper aims to describe the processes involved in
manual e-waste recycling at Agbogbloshie, and highlights the
health and psychosocial challenges associated with this type of
work.
METHODS
This study was conducted at the Agbogbloshie e-waste
processing site located in the heart of Accra, adjacent to the
Agbogbloshie food market, and close to the central business
district. The study employed a qualitative approach relying on
direct visual observations and interviews. The study was
approved by the institutional review board of the University of
Ghana, College of Health Sciences.
Eight (8) e-waste workers were engaged in in-depth
interviews. Initially, an interview guide was developed
through rigorous literature search in addition to field
observations at the e-waste site. The interview guide required
workers to describe; in detail, the processes and tools used
during e-waste recycling. Workers were also asked about the
reasons for their choice of the specific e-waste job category
they worked in, the health challenges they experience from
their work the level of stress or difficulty associated with their
work and their ability to cope with these stressors. A series of
walk through observations were done to supplement
information obtained from the interviews. The interviews
lasted between 10 to 15 minutes and were recorded using a
Sony™ voice recorder. The audio recordings were transferred
onto a computer for transcription and subsequent analysis.
An interpretive analysis approach was used to analyse
the data. A reflective cognitive approach was used in
explaining the observations made as recommended by Gambo
(2017).
RESULTS
Demographics
The study sample comprised eight male e-waste workers
with ages ranging from 19 to 34 years and with an average ±
SD age of 25.88 ± 5.22 years. Five of the participants had
primary education, one had completed junior high school and
two had been educated up to senior high school. The number
of years they had worked as e-waste workers at Agbogbloshie
ranged from 3 years to 10 years with an average of 6.88 ± 3.00
years. Participants worked 3 to 6 days a week depending on
the availability of e-waste to recycle.
Description of e-waste recycling processes at Agbogbloshie
Figure 1 is a flowchart summarizing the observed e-
waste recycling processes at Agbogbloshie. There are 3 main
job categories among e-waste workers at Agbogbloshie,
namely, representing the essential activities of collection,
dismantling and burning of e-waste and interspersed with
other supporting tasks (Acquah et al., 2018, unpublished).
Figure 1: Flowchart showing e-waste recycling processes at
Agbogbloshie.
Collection of e-waste could span the entire working shift
which is usually from 6am to 5pm. It involves workers
travelling to different neighbourhoods in the city and
surrounding towns in search of end-of-life electronics.
Workers usually walk to these places pulling a collection cart
along as shown in Figure 2A. E-waste is sometimes collected
for free from small local dumps, or are purchased from owners
for a small fee. The collected e-waste is loaded onto a cart and
pulled to the dismantling site where it is sold to dismantlers or
dismantled by the same collectors. Some collectors who may
be fortunate to have motor bikes or bicycles may use these as
a means of transportation during the collection process.
Occasionally, when collectors gather very large quantities of
e-waste that may not fit on their bikes or collection carts, they
hire the services of transporters who use tricycles to aid in
conveying the items to the e-waste site. These tricycles are
commonly known among the workers as “motor king”. The
transporters (motor king riders) are usually stationed adjacent
the main dismantling area close to the main Agbogbloshie
street awaiting customers who require their transport services.
In addition to e-waste purchased from the neighbouring towns,
cargo trucks full of imported e-waste were occasionally seen
making their way into the e-waste site. Illegal import of e-
waste is a major source of e-waste in Ghana (Balde et al.,
2015). The e-waste from these trucks are subsequently sold to
e-waste workers for recycling.
E-waste items brought to the dismantling site are sorted
initially into two groups as shown in Figure 1. The first
involves an attempt to salvage e-waste that could be reused.
Electronic items that may not be completely damaged and
could be repaired for reuse are sold to a group of workers
called repairers whose main interest is to refurbish e-waste and
resell them to consumers. The second process of sorting
involves collating of items that can be dismantled which are
then sold to dismantlers.
Dismantling involves the use of predominantly locally
made simple tools such as hammer and chisel and occasionally
screw drivers and spanners to break apart e-waste in order to
separate the different metals (Figure 2B). The metal
constituents are usually copper, iron and aluminium. Items
usually dismantled includes, computers, fans, refrigerators, air
conditioners, photocopy machines, car engines as well as
starters and any other item gathered that is likely to contain
some metal constituent. A typical dismantling session lasts
between 3 to 4 hours.
Dismantling is usually done employing one of three
postures. Smaller electrical gadgets are usually dismantled
while sitting and supporting the object being dismantled with
the feet as illustrated in Figure 2B. Occasionally, dismantlers
may need to stand and bend over to dismantle larger items
such as car engine blocks or static condenser components from
refrigerators. The third major posture adopted, consists of
prolonged upright standing to dismantle very large objects.
During the walkthrough observations, some dismantlers were
observed dismantling a minibus using this posture. After e-
waste items are dismantled, they are then sorted into their
respective metallic constituents and items that could not be
dismantled are sent for burning to recover the metal
constituents (e.g., electric cables) as shown in Figure 2C.
Collection of e-waste
Sorting of collected items
Dismantling of
sorted items
Burning of
items that
cannot be
dismantled
(e.g., Copper
wires)
Refurbishing of
sorted items
Weighing of
recycled items
(copper, aluminum,
iron)
Selling of
refurbished
items to
consumers
Selling of
retrieved metals
from e-waste
A: Collectors pulling a cart with e-
waste
B: Dismantling of e-waste C: Carrying cables for burning
Figure 2: Picture showing the three main e-waste activities performed at Agbogbloshie.
Burning involves setting up fire to items using foam
materials retrieved from spoilt refrigerators. A single burning
session of e-waste lasts between 30 to 45 minutes. A long
metal rod is used to rotate/flip the burning items to ensure a
uniform distribution of the fire and expose the metal. The final
metallic end products retrieved from burning and dismantling
are then sent for weighing.
Weighing of e-waste involves placing the sorted
retrieved metals (e.g., copper, aluminium, iron) onto a
weighing scale to determine its resale value. Copper is sold at
a higher price than aluminium which is also sold at a higher
price than iron. The retrieved metals are often sold to
middlemen. These middle men buy processed e-waste from
workers in small quantities and gather them into larger piles to
be sold at higher rates to industrial companies in Tema, an
industrial city in Accra, where these are processed into iron
rods, roofing sheets, cooking utensils and gas cookers
(Amankwaa, 2013).
Health risks of e-waste recycling in Agbogbloshie
This study investigated health and psychosocial
challenges among the 3 main e-waste job categories
(Collectors, dismantlers and burners). Participants were
interviewed about the health challenges experienced during
their work. Symptoms reported included burns and lacerations,
musculoskeletal pains, headaches, elevated body temperature
and respiratory issues (e.g., coughs). A few sample quotes
from participants are provided below.
“You see my hand? It is fire that burned it to make it
appear this way” – 23 years old, e-waste burner
“When the smoke is inhaled by you, you will experience
coughing at night. And the phlegm produced are blackish
in colour just like the colour of the smoke from the
burning. When you cough, it will make you feel pain.”-
23 years old, e-waste burner.
“When we go back home and sleep, we realize that your
body aches……. your body becomes hot. Then you go
and buy ‘Kwik Action’ and you take it as medication then
you sleep…….When it becomes hot, I take Kwik Action to
make it cool.” 28 years old e-waste burner.
“I get joint pains and headaches from the hot sun” 29
years e-waste collector.
Six out of the 8 workers interviewed reported body pains as a
frequently experienced health challenge. These workers rely
extensively on pain medications in order to cope with the
symptoms. This is indicated in some quotes from workers
reported below.
“You see when it comes and maybe you get some pain
killer, maybe it will take a day or two and it will just go”
24-year-old, e-waste dismantler,
“You need to take pain killers before you can sleep”
19-year-old, e-waste dismantler.
Psychosocial challenges
Interviewed workers overwhelmingly considered the
work of e-waste recycling to be stressful and difficult to
perform. Below are some reports from the workers
interviewed:
“The job is very difficult to do….. I want to quit it. The
last time, I was injured by it and I want to quit” 23 years
old, e-waste burner.
“Every aspect of the work is difficult……It’s not good for
a human being to do this work.” 30 years old, e-waste
burner.
Interviewed workers complained about the high physical
demands of e-waste recycling which makes it a difficult job to
cope with. The desire to quit e-waste recycling was obvious
among participants. Participants also expressed concerns that,
although their work presented injury risk, a leave of absence
from work presented the risk of losing prior customers to other
workers. Thus, workers felt the need to push themselves to the
limit and work every day despite their injuries.
Workers also complained about the low revenue they
earn from e-waste recycling as indicated in the quote below:
“I work for long hours and I only earn a little
money….when I make enough money, I will quit this job
and find a less risky job” 23 years old, e-waste burner.
One of the participants reported earning between GH¢20 to
GH¢50 Ghana cedis (about $4 to $10) a week. According to
the worker this income is inadequate and does not allow
saving to generate some capital to change job.
Burning of e-waste usually requires very little or no
revenue to operate. Thus, workers who lack the financial
resources needed to buy e-waste resort to engaging in e-waste
burning. One burner admitted that although high risks are
associated with burning of e-waste, he does not have enough
money to buy e-waste from collectors to dismantle and as such
continues in his current job until he can raise enough money to
find another job.
“I don’t have a job and I don’t have money to buy from
the others to dismantle. That’s why I am doing this work
little by little.” 23 years old, e-waste burner.
For this worker, since, burning of e-waste does not really
require purchasing of items, it was much easier to cope with.
Thus, he waits for his other colleagues to dismantle their
purchased good and then help them recover metals via burning
at a fee from items such as copper wires that cannot be
dismantled.
The e-waste job category an e-waste worker was enrolled
into was largely influenced by the person who initially
introduced them to e-waste recycling and provided the initial
financial support to work with. Thus, workers were compelled
to continue work in the same e-waste job category as their
financiers.
DISCUSSION
The present study qualitatively described the processes
involved in e-waste recycling at Agbogbloshie, Accra, Ghana,
as well as explored the health and psychosocial challenges
encountered by workers. Basic collecting, dismantling and
open-air burning are used to retrieve essential metals from e-
waste during the recycling process. The e-waste recycling
process relies on the use of simple manual tools such as hand-
pulled collection carts; hammers, chisels, spanners and screw
drivers for dismantling as well as the use of long metal rods or
pipes for rotating, flipping and moving items burnt during
recycling. Whiles it seems cost effective, these tools are
inefficient and subject workers to high risks of
musculoskeletal injury.
Laceration injuries were common among e-waste
workers. Earlier studies conducted at Agbogbloshie, have
reported a 96.2% prevalence of lacerations among e-waste
workers (Adusei et al., 2015, unpublished) which is
exceptionally high. Similarly, burn injuries were a common
challenge reported among burners. The lack of appropriate
personal protective equipment (PPE) usage during burning
may be a significant contributing factor to the occurrence of
these injuries. Burners at Agbogbloshie usually wear boots to
protect their feet and long clothes to cover their limbs and
torso. That notwithstanding, the clothes worn were regular
clothes and not fire retardant. Workers hands and faces are
usually left exposed and were the common sites of burn
injuries. A burner narrated an account of how his younger
brother sustained serious injuries to the face during e-waste
burning. Other workers had various scars on their hands to
show for the numerous instances of burns they had
experienced. Injuries sustained during e-waste recycling may
be devastating, disabling, and life threatening.
The use of gloves, nose masks and other PPE was not a
common practice. According to the participants, PPE was
occasionally provided by donor groups in limited supply.
However, when the PPEs were worn out, workers were unable
to replace these on their own and so their use was
discontinued.
In addition to burns and injuries, participants reported
episodes of coughs and chest pain from coughing. The
exposure of e-waste workers to high volumes of smoke from
the burning process poses a great risk to the respiratory system
and health of these workers. Amankwaa (2013), reported high
acute respiratory infections among e-waste workers in
Agbogbloshie. Other global studies have shown significant
relationships between e-waste recycling and adverse
respiratory health outcomes (Zheng et al., 2013). The use of
face masks could have been a first line attempt to reducing
respiratory exposures by e-waste workers. This was, however,
not the practice at Agbogbloshie.
Participants in this present study reported body pain after
the workday. E-waste recycling at Agbogbloshie entails
multiple instances of lifting, bending and twisting as well as
assuming non-neutral postures for prolonged periods. These
activities are suspected to cause musculoskeletal pain (Wai et
al., 2010) and disorders (Chaffin et al., 2006). Unpublished
results from a study by the Global Environmental and
Occupational Health (GEOHealth) research group of the
University of Ghana (GEOHealth, 2019) showed a 90%
prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among
e-waste workers.
In an attempt to manage the pain experienced by workers
during e-waste recycling, e-waste workers at Agbogbloshie
resort to self-medication and excessive reliance on pain
medication. The over-dependence and inevitable abuse of
these medications is a worrying health concern. Recent media
reports in Ghana indicated a surge in tramadol abuse
(GhanaWeb, 2018) and this was particularly evident during
our field observations. Workers were seen mixing tramadol
with energy drinks and consumed the mixture during work.
Workers interviewed in this study indicated that, it helps them
to work for longer periods without experiencing body pain or
fatigue. The self-medication habits as well as the possible
abuse of tramadol may result in long term health
consequences. Immediate measures to address this problem
could save workers from expected adverse effects.
High level of stress as well as excessive physical demand
were a concern to participants. Participants complained about
the difficult nature of their job and consistently expressed
great dissatisfaction with their jobs. Although e-waste
recycling provides some form of livelihood, little income is
earned by workers despite the excessive physical demands of
the job. Psychosocial risk factors such as high job demands
and low job satisfaction have been shown to increase the level
of stress of workers and subsequently increasing their chances
of experiencing musculoskeletal disorders (Bongers et al.,
1993; Netherlands Organisation for Applied Scientific
Research, 2017). Hence, it is suspected that, some of the
psychosocial challenges experienced by e-waste workers at
Agbogbloshie may have a bearing on the musculoskeletal
symptoms experienced by these workers and could require
further investigation.
Despite these obvious challenges associated with e-waste
recycling at Agbogbloshie, the lack of the needed financial,
social and governmental support required to address the
increasing problem of e-waste recycling, compels these
workers to continue in this hazardous trade.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The methods used in recycling of e-waste at
Agbogbloshie in Accra, Ghana are rudimentary and manual.
These occupational exposures have undesirable health
implications for workers. Although workers are unsatisfied
with their working conditions and income earned, finding
alternate jobs is challenging.
An ergonomic study is underway to quantify the
associations between physical work exposures and worker
musculoskeletal health among e-waste workers in
Agbogbloshie (Acquah et al., 2018, unpublished). The purpose
of this study is to identify and reduce the adverse effects of e-
waste recycling by improving procedures used in recycling as
well as educating workers on observing health and safety
protocols. Further research is needed to identify locally
adapted ergonomic interventions for effective recycling of e-
waste and reducing the health risks to workers.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This project was funded by the National Institute of
Health through the West Africa-Michigan Collaborative
Health Alliance for Reshaping Training, Education and
Research (CHARTER) II for Global Environmental and
Occupational Health (GEOHealth) programme.
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... For example, in Thailand, 87% of the informal workers making handcrafts reported upper back pain [19]. In Brazil, 42% of the informal mine workers reported back pain [20]; in Ghana, e-waste collectors reported 90% overall WRMDs such as lower back pain (65%), knees (39%) and shoulders (37%) [21]. ...
... In this study, RULA was applied for each of the 18 informal workers, while performing each of the identified tasks, and the obtained RALs of the workers were calculated to obtain an average RAL per task, prior to extending the tool. the RAL by the duration of exposure, plus vibration (coded on a binary scale) adapted from a prior study [21]. The following equation was used: ...
... However, this was already accounted for by increasing the RULA score by 1 (actions repeated more than 4 times per minute can increase the RULA score (score = 1)). To obtain the EV, we multiplied the RAL by the duration of exposure, plus vibration (coded on a binary scale) adapted from a prior study [21]. The following equation was used: ...
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Full-text available
The work conducted in the informal sector is highly variable within and between days. Characterizing ergonomic exposures remains a challenge because of unstructured work settings and schedules. The existing ergonomic risk assessment tools have been widely used in formal work settings with a narrow range of exposure, and for predefined tasks that primarily constitute a daily routine. There is limited information in the literature on how they have been applied in informal workplaces. The aim of this study was to extend an existing risk assessment tool and to evaluate the applicability of the extended tool by assessing ergonomic exposure related to hand-made cookware operations. Eighteen hand-made cookware makers were recruited from six sites. A walkthrough risk assessment questionnaire was used to collect information on workers, tasks, work stations and workplace structures. The Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) screening tool was extended by including duration and vibration. An action priority matrix was used to guide intervention. According to the RULA action levels, the workers required investigation and changes soon, and immediate investigation and changes. The use of an action priority matrix was appropriate, and indicated that all the workers assessed were within the high to very high exposure domain and required immediate corrective measures. The methodology used proved to be an effective and reliable strategy for identifying ergonomic exposure among hand-made cookware makers.
... In this collaboration various studies [3,[9][10][11][12][13][14] used multidisciplinary combination of methods to investigate the environmental and health effects of e-waste recycling in Agbogbloshie. We collected and analyzed in the laboratory both biological and environmental samples in a longitudinal design at 4 time-points. ...
... Direct field observations were conducted to supplement quantitative data collected in the field. The areas of investigation included: evaluation of ergonomic risk factors and work-related musculoskeletal disorders among e-waste workers [3,14,15]; investigating the adverse cumulative exposures [11], including particulate matter discharge that determined air quality [9,13] and its effects on workers respiratory health. The results from these and other relevant studies on e-waste worker health are synthesized and summarized in this paper. ...
... An alarmingly high prevalence (90%) of work-related MSDs exists among e-waste workers [14] in Agbogbloshie, Ghana. Work-related musculoskeletal disorder symptoms were mostly reported in the lower back (65%), knee (39%), shoulder (37%), upper arm (30%), lower leg (27%) and neck (26%) (14). ...
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The unregulated and unorganized structure of informal electronic waste recycling worksites exposes workers to numerous occupational hazards. This context also presents research challenges in collecting exposure data to establish linkages with adverse health effects and development of risk-mitigating strategies. This paper presents some findings from a 5-year multinational and multi-institutional collaboration of academic and government partners, which documented extensive occupational and environmental health conditions at the Agbogbloshie electronic waste site in central Accra, Ghana.
... A recent assessment of physical work exposures at this site found that prolonged walking (often over uneven terrain), sitting, standing and performing manual material handling (MMH) tasks such as carrying, lifting, and pushing of loaded collection carts were prominent among e-waste workers (Acquah et al., 2021b). These exposures are known risk factors for the development of WRMSDs (Jaffar et al., 2011;Kwon, et al., 2011;Marshall et al., 2000;Wai et al., 2010) and might explain the high prevalence (~90%) of MSD symptoms in this population (Acquah et al., 2019a;Acquah, et al., 2021a). ...
... Informal e-waste workers in low and middle income countries have a high prevalence of work-related MSDs (Acquah et al., 2021a;Fischer et al., 2020;Acquah et al., 2019a;Ohajinwa et al., 2018). Lower back pain (LBP) is generally the most commonly reported MSD symptom (Fischer et al., 2020;Ohajinwa et al., 2018;Acquah et al., 2021a). ...
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Rudimentary methods for electronic waste (e-waste) recycling employed in developing countries are a source of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs). A summarized comparison of WRMSDs and preliminary exposure assessment among e-waste dismantlers (D) and burners (B) in Agbogbloshie, Ghana is presented. A cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate WRMSDs and associated risk factors using the Cornell Musculoskeletal Discomfort Questionnaire and a newly developed ergonomic assessment tool. Results indicated higher WRMSDs prevalence in the lower back (68% D vs. 52% B; p = 0.172), shoulder (41% D vs. 29% B; p = 0.279) and upper arm (33% D vs 5% B; p = 0.010). Moderate to severe trunk flexion, high force exertion, repetition and vibration were prevalent risk factors among workers and were significantly higher in dismantlers than burners ( p ≤ 0.001). Detailed ergonomic studies investigating the relationship between physical exposures and WRMSDs are needed to provide a deeper understanding of WRMSD causation in e-waste workers and more particularly in unstructured, unregulated work.
... Multiple recent studies conducted at Agbogbloshie document the environmental effects of informal, unregulated e-waste recycling [7,8]. Studies also suggest a high level of manual material handling (MMH; e.g., lifting, carrying) in a harsh outdoor environment [9][10][11][12]. These conditions are known risk factors for work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), however, little is known about their effects on the musculoskeletal health of informal e-waste workers (EWWs). ...
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Recycling of electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) in developing countries is mostly conducted in the informal sector consisting of low skilled workers. Informal e-waste recycling predominantly involves the physically demanding work of manually collecting, dismantling and burning of e-waste items to extract reusable components and valuable metals including gold or copper. This cross-sectional study investigated the effects of manual e-waste recycling work on the musculoskeletal health of 176 workers at Agbogbloshie in Accra, Ghana – the largest informal e-waste dumpsites in Africa. Findings indicate significant associations between prolonged walking and weighted MSD symptom scores for the lower extremities, and between manual material handlings tasks and weighted MSD symptom scores for the upper extremities and lower back. The study calls attention to the need for ergonomics research in the informal work sector to promote safer practices and address a range of worker health concerns.
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Most existing ergonomic assessment tools are intended for routine work. Time- and cost- efficient observational tools for ergonomic assessment of unregulated work are lacking. This paper presents the development of an observation-based tool designed to investigate ergonomic exposures among informal electronic waste workers that could be applied to other unregulated jobs/tasks. Real-time coding of observation is used to estimate the relative duration and intensity of exposure to key work postures, forceful exertions, movements, contact stress and vibration. Time spent in manual material handling activities such as carrying, lifting and pushing/pulling of working carts are also estimated. A preliminary study conducted with 6 e-waste workers showed that the tool can easily be used with minimal training and good inter- observer agreement (i.e., 89% to 100%) for most risk factors assessed. This new assessment tool provides effective and flexible options for quantifying ergonomic exposures among workers engaged in unregulated, highly variable work.
Article
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Electronic waste (e-waste) is a worldwide problem in terms of increasing production rate in the global waste stream. Its recycling is known to be associated with adverse health outcomes. The recycling site at Agbogbloshie is a major e-waste recycling hub which presents enormous health threats to the residents in this community as a result of exposure to complex mixtures of chemicals associated with the poor work methods employed. This paper describes the processes involved in e-waste recycling at Agbogbloshie and discusses some of the associated health and psychosocial challenges. Direct field observations and in-depth interviews of eight e-waste workers were conducted from November, 2017 to December, 2017. Results from a thematic analysis of the data gathered; suggest that inappropriate recycling methods, financial constraints, and the high physical demands of e-waste recycling work were associated with adverse musculoskeletal health conditions among the workers. A more systematic ergonomic study is currently being undertaken to quantify the associations between physical work exposures and worker musculoskeletal health among e-waste workers in Agbogbloshie. Further studies that focus on locally adapted ergonomic interventions for effective recycling of e-waste and reducing the health risk to workers are needed.
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The development of the recycling technologies for waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) has entered a new stage. The WEEE disposing technologies have evolved from simple disassembly, classification and sorting to high value-added utilization technologies. In the past decade, some modified and novel technologies have been developed to recover metals from WEEE. This paper focuses on the recycling of metals from WEEE. The recycling principle, separating process, and optimized operating parameters of existing technologies are summarized and discussed in detail. Based on traditional recycling technologies of WEEE, pyrometallurgical technology and some mild extracting reagent, such as chloride medium, ammonia–ammonium and non-cyanide lixiviants can effectively recycle metals. Compared with the conventional acid and cyanide leaching, they have vast improvements in aspect of environmental protection. More than 98% of Cu and 70% of Au can be extracted. In addition, electrochemical technology, supercritical technology, vacuum metallurgical technology, etc. are also applied to recycle WEEE. The recovery rate of Cu and Pb under optimum conditions is around 84.2% and 89.4% respectively in supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) combined with electrokinetic (EK) technology. Vacuum technology has good environmental performance due to its avoiding discharge of waste water. Other new technologies such as ultrasound technology, mechanochemical technology, and molten salt oxidation technology have also been tried to recycle metals from WEEE. Regrettably, although many endeavors to develop recycling technologies have been attempted, these technologies are still relatively single and limited because WEEE is a complex system. Hence, the shortages and defects of each technology are discussed from the perspective of technological promotion and environmental protection. Furthermore, the outlook about the further development of recycling technologies for metals from WEEE is presented.
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Ghana's pursuit of socio-economic growth has necessitated joining the information communication technology (ICT) revolution, thus increasing the consumption and obsolescence rate of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) and the creation of what is popularly called e-waste. The absence of legislation governing its importation and disposal, combined with the dynamics of Accra's urban economy, including neo-liberal policies and lack of formal job opportunities, has triggered people's ingenuity to engage in novel occupations such as e-waste recycling. Though a lucrative strategy, it comes with a price for those involved: environmental health risks, a fact well articulated by a burgeoning literature. Nevertheless, little empirical evidence exists relating to this perceived relationship. Using questionnaires, FGDs and in-depth interviews, this study fills the lacuna. The findings reveal that the mean daily income of an e-waste worker is GH¢30, far above the daily minimum wage of GH¢4·48. Despite the positives, the findings also show that the environment and health can be compromised.
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The informal processing of electronic waste or e-waste contributes to the release of high concentrations of transition metals into the ambient air. The damage caused by chromium, nickel and manganese exposure on lung function in school children from an e-waste recycling area and the role of oxidative stress in this process were evaluated. We recruited school children (n=144, 8-13 years) from an e-waste recycling area in China compared with the control. Spirometry was performed to assess lung function status. The blood levels of chromium, nickel and manganese, antioxidant enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation of the subjects were examined. The concentrations of blood manganese (bMn) and serum nickel (sNi) in the exposed group were significantly higher than those in controls for all three age groups. The forced vital capacity value of boys aged 8-9 years was significantly lower than that of the control. Malondialdehyde levels and superoxide dismutase activities increased significantly in children aged 8-9 years from e-waste environment, but catalase activities declined. School children from an e-waste recycling area were exposed to high levels of the three transition metals. The accumulation of bMn and sNi may be risk factors for oxidative damage and decreased pulmonary function.Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology advance online publication, 1 August 2012; doi:10.1038/jes.2012.84.
Article
Initial, and still dominant, explanations of transboundary e-waste flows have relied on the Pollution Haven Hypothesis (PHH), which theorizes that pollution intensive economic activities will relocate to jurisdictions with the most relaxed environmental regulations. This hypothesis has influenced the parameters of the BAN Amendment to the Basel Convention, which uniformly restricts the movement of hazardous waste (including e-waste) from the global North-to-South. Recent research, however, has shown that e-waste does not simply flow to less regulated areas with cheaper labor: for example, flows are not simply from North-to-South, and e-waste processing areas are only in a subset of developing countries and very specific regions within these. Specifically, e-waste processing tends to be done very largely within “hubs,” regional concentrations of firms and organizations, which, though overwhelmingly informal, exhibit many of the characteristics of other kinds of industrial clusters. Thus, a more nuanced theory of e-waste destinations is overdue, promising greater explanatory power as well as more granular and effective policy stances and tools. This paper contributes to these goals by synthesizing indications from the literature on e-waste hubs in Africa and Asia of recurring factors shaping their emergence, and further elaborating these on the basis of our own extensive field research in two very different informal e-waste hubs in Palestine and Ghana. This analysis offers an initial theory of place-specific characteristics and circumstances that attract and facilitate the emergence and agglomeration of such industries. Our findings thus allow us to move beyond the PHH first pass macro conceptualizations to more nuanced and dynamic accounts of e-waste destinations at a regional and even micro-level, as well to challenge and improve upon the policies derived from the PHH framing.
Article
Studied the association between psychosocial work factors and musculoskeletal disease, via a qualitative review of the epidemiologic literature. It is concluded that monotonous work, high perceived work load, and time pressure are related to musculoskeletal symptoms. The data also suggest that low control on the job and lack of social support by colleagues are positively associated with musculoskeletal disease. Perceived stress may be an intermediary in this process. In addition, stress symptoms are often associated with musculoskeletal disease, and some studies indicate that stress symptoms contribute to the development of this disease. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Article
Low back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder that often occurs in the working-age population. Although numerous physical activities have been implicated in its etiology, determining causation remains challenging and requires a methodologically rigorous approach. To conduct a systematic review focused on establishing a causal relationship between occupational bending or twisting and LBP. A systematic review of the literature using Medline, Embase, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, and Occupational Safety and Health database, gray literature, hand-searching occupational health journals, reference lists of included studies, and experts. Evaluation of methodological quality using a modified Newcastle-Ottawa Scale for observational studies. Summary levels of evidence for each of the Bradford-Hill criteria for causality for each category of bending or twisting and type of LBP. Studies reporting an association between occupational bending or twisting and LBP. Numerical association between different levels of exposure to bending or twisting and the presence or severity of LBP. A systematic review was performed to identify, evaluate, and summarize the literature related to establishing a causal relationship, according to Bradford-Hill criteria, between occupational bending or twisting and LBP. This search yielded 2,766 citations. Ten high-quality studies reported on bending and LBP. Five were case-control studies and five were prospective cohort studies. There was conflicting evidence for association, with five studies demonstrating significant associations in the majority of their risk estimates, but no evidence for consistency. Seven studies assessed dose response, with four studies demonstrating a nonsignificant dose-response trend. Four studies were able to assess temporality, but only one demonstrated significant risk estimates. Biological plausibility was discussed by two studies. There was no available evidence for experiment. Seven high-quality studies reported on twisting and LBP. Two were case-control studies and five were prospective cohort studies. Three studies reported significant associations in the majority of their risk estimates, with no evidence for consistency. Three studies demonstrated a nonsignificant dose-response trend. Two studies were able to assess temporality, but only one study was able to demonstrate significant risk estimates. Two studies discussed biological plausibility. There was no available evidence for experiment. A summary of existing studies was not able to find high-quality studies that satisfied more than three of the Bradford-Hill criteria for causation for either occupational bending or twisting and LBP. Conflicting evidence in multiple criteria was identified. This suggests that specific subcategories could contribute to LBP. However, the evidence suggests that occupational bending or twisting in general is unlikely to be independently causative of LBP.
Occupational physical activity and the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among e-waste workers in Agbogbloshie
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Acquah, A. A., Arko-Mensah, J., D'Souza, C., Martin, B., Quakyi, I. A., Robins, T., & Fobil, J. (2018). Occupational physical activity and the prevalence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders among e-waste workers in Agbogbloshie, Accra-Ghana. In 3rd International conference on physical activity and sport for health and development in Africa (IC-PASHDA 2018). Accra.
Mapping Of Health Conditions Associated With E-Waste Activities At Agbogbloshie, Accra. (Unpublished MSc Dissertation)
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Adusei, A. (2015). Mapping Of Health Conditions Associated With E-Waste Activities At Agbogbloshie, Accra. (Unpublished MSc Dissertation). University of Ghana, Accra.
The global e-waste monitor -2014
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Balde, C. P., Wang, F., Kuehr, R., & Huisman, J. (2015). The global e-waste monitor -2014. Bonn Germany: United Nations University, IAS -SCYCLE. Retrieved from http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2018/ph241/fleischer1/docs/unu-2014.pdf