E waste in ghana pdf file

The rich worlds electronic waste, dumped in ghana citylab. Sorting through used electronics is a livelihood for many in the agbogbloshie area, but toxic e waste poses serious health risks. The contents of the ghana ewaste country assessment are those of the. General waste management in ghana is the responsibility of the ministry of local. Pdf electronic waste management in ghana issues and practices. Solid waste management challenges in urban areas of ghana. Nearly 42 million tons of ewaste everything from microwaves and electric shavers to washing. This amount, in 2009, represented 280,000 metric tons of e waste that entered ghana, of which only 1% were processed through a formal facility.

Ewaste, the term given to discarded electronic appliances, is often shipped by developed nations to poorer countries such as ghana. Pdf the recent expanded usage of electronic materials like computers, television sets and refrigerators in ghana has not generated an effective. Environmentalists are worried about an extraordinary rubbish dump in the capital accra. The burning truth behind an ewaste dump in africa ending the toxic smoke rising from an iconic dump in ghana will take more than curbing western waste. The question, he argues, is whether secondhand electronics are being exported to ghana as e waste or to supply a demand for cheap electronics that can help the country bridge the digital divide. The toxic effects of electronic waste in accra, ghana. Informal processing of electronic waste in agbogbloshie, ghana. Tonnes of electronic waste are dumped at agbogbloshie. Due to its international recognition as a major informal ewaste recycling centre in the world, this section provides some highlights of the. Pdf plastic waste management in ghana researchgate. This paper looks at the magnitude ewaste trade in ghana by analyzing the growing trade in.

By taking a complex adaptive systems cas approach to ewaste management in ghana, i investigate the dismantling activity and the environmental and social. Uk ewaste illegally dumped in ghana environment the. Rtd visits the countrys most infamous dumping ground. Street view next to the agbogbloshie ewaste dumpsite in accra, may 2019. In ghana, per capita generation of plastic waste stands at 0. It is estimated that throughout the country only about 10% of solid wastes gen. Ghana annually imports around 215,000 tons of secondhand consumer electronics from abroad, primarily from western europe, and generates another 129,000 tons of e waste every year. In ghana, the global problem of ewaste has local consequences. Agbogbloshies e waste area covers almost a square kilometre strewn with a wide variety of electronics and smoking fires of burning waste. The burning truth behind an e waste dump in africa ending the toxic smoke rising from an iconic dump in ghana will take more than curbing western waste. E waste, or electronic waste, is a broad term referring to a range of electronics, including refrigerators, microwaves, and televisions.

Government policy and initiatives on ewaste in ghana epa. Photographer kevin mcelvaney documents a former wetland in ghana which is home to the worlds largest ewaste dumping site, and where most. Various aspects of ewaste management in ghana have been studied in. Supporting ghana to introduce a sustainable ewaste management system. Pdf electronic waste management in ghana issues and.