Waste Crime - Waste Risks: Gaps in Meeting the Global Waste Challenge

The i

ANSU

because of lower consumption at the household level and, therefore, more dependency on imported goods, including second-hand goods, which end up discarded as waste within a year or two after arrival (Amoyaw-Osei 2011). End-of-life equipment is disposed of at dumpsites or auctioned to scrap dealers. Also in Africa, informal recycling and reprocessing is a relatively new and important industry, operating in the absence of controls and regulations. It is estimated that the flow of e-waste to West Africa will increase as regulations in Asian countries are tightened (Lundgren 2012). E-waste recycling is flourishing in many parts of the world. South Asia and Southeast Asia appear to be major regional desti- nations, including, but not limited to, China, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan and Vietnam. In West Africa, common, but not limited destinations are Ghana, Nigeria, and Benin among others.

GHAI

Physical dismantling, using hammers, chisels, screw- drivers, and bare hands, to separate different materials Removing components from printed circuit boards by heating over coal-fired grills Stripping of metals in open-pit acid baths to recover gold and other metals Chipping and melting plastics without proper ventilation Burning cables to recover copper, and burning unwanted materials in open air Disposing of unsalvageable materials in fields and along riverbanks Refilling toner cartridges Commonly practiced crude recycling methods of informal recyclers in Asia (Chi et al. 2011) (1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7)

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