E-waste environmental contamination and harm to public health in China

Abstract

The adverse effects of electronic waste (e-waste) on the human body have stirred up concern in recent years. China is one of the countries that confront serious pollution and human exposure of e-waste, and the majority of the population is exposed to potentially hazardous substances that are derived from informal e-waste recycling processes. This study reviews recent reports on human exposure to e-waste in China, with particular focus on exposure routes (e.g., inhalation and ingestion) and several toxicities of human (e.g., endocrine system, respiratory system, reproductive system, developmental toxicity, neurotoxicity, and genetic toxicity). Pieces of evidence that associate e-waste exposure with human health effects in China are assessed. The role of toxic heavy metals (e.g., lead, cadmium, chromium, mercury, and nickel) and organic pollutants (e.g., polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs), polyhalogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (PHAHs), bisphenol A (BPA)) on human health is also briefly discussed.

Keywords

e-waste / heavy metal / organic pollutant / hazardous / toxicity / human health / China

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (21177080).

Compliance with ethics guidelines

Xijin Xu, Xiang Zeng, H. Marike Boezen, and Xia Huo declare that they have no conflict of interest. This manuscript is a review article and does not involve a research protocol requiring approval by the relevant institutional review board or ethics committee.

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2014 Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg