on Soil Quality in Enugu Urban, Nigeria
FEATURED PAPER
By Henry Ajaelu and Henry Agu
Department of Urban and Regional Planning
Enugu State University of Science and Technology
Enugu, Nigeria
Abstract
This paper examined the impact of e-waste disposal on soil quality in Enugu urban. Field survey and experimental research methods were adopted. A single null hypothesis was tested to determine the degree of impact on the soil. With a well-structured questionnaire, information on the existence and level of awareness of relevant regulations on e-waste disposal showed that there is total lack of knowledge of any existing laws or regulations guiding e-waste disposal resulting in indiscriminate disposal practices. However the null hypothesis which stated that the existing e-wastes have no significant effect on soil quality of construction Enugu urban was accepted. This may simply suggest that the effect has not reached an alarming level, however, there is need for further research on its impact on other aspects of the environment especially when studies in China and India have shown that unregulated disposal of e-wastes can contaminate soil, groundwater, and air, as well as affect all those involved in their processing. The effect may be time-dependent.
Keywords: Construction, E-waste, Impact, Soil-quality,
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Information and telecommunications technology (ICT) and computer Internet networking have penetrated nearly every aspect of modern life and is positively affecting human life even in the most remote areas of developing countries (Osibanjo and Nnorom 2007), giving rise to the rapid growth in Electrical and Electronic Equipment production and consumption in the last twenty years (Sahu and Srinivasan 2008). Consequently, the hunger for trendy and sophisticated electronic products increases the frequency of replacement of older ones, thus creating large volumes of e-wastes.
Among all existing waste products, e-waste is the most rapidly growing, with about 50 million tonnes created annually (Basel Action Network, 2011). E-waste is one of the fastest growing global waste streams and it is a source of major concern as it has a growth rate of 3-5% per annum, thus making it three times faster than normal municipal solid waste(Ogungbuyi, Nnorom, Osibanjo, and Schluep, 2012). Most electronic wastes are generated in Europe and the United States, with China and countries of Eastern Europe and Latin America as large generators of such wastes, Robinson (2009).In Nigeria, and in fact, Enugu, the life span of electronic goods has been substantially shortened due to advancements in electronics technology and production of more attractive/improved models and designs as well as the craze to remain trendy, common with people of developing African countries.For instance, the average life cycle of a new computer as posited by Widmer, Oswald-Krapf, Sinha-Khetriwal, Böni, and Schnellmann, (2005), has decreased from 4.5 years in 1992 to an estimated 2 years in 2005 and is further decreasing and also generating a flourishing export trade in used electronics from developed to developing countries, though up to 75% of such shipments are normally unusable, (UNEP, 2005). Africa has therefore, become a centre for the receipt of obsolete electronic equipment (Basel Action Network, 2014).
Managing normal wastes from households in Nigeria already appears to be an insurmountable task. Admittedly, the absence of a proper mechanism, regulations, and standards for waste disposal makes these high-tech products often end their lives in the ‘normal’ waste stream meant either for recycling or landfill (Oteng-Ababio, 2010). The situation becomes worrisome where studies in China and India have shown that unregulated disposal of e-wastes can contaminate soil, groundwater, and air, as well as affect all those involved in their processing (BAN, 2005). In Enugu urban e-wastes are processed informally by open burning to isolate, for instance, copper from plastics, under risky and environmentally unfriendly conditions. Most strategic locations in Enugu urban are used as e-waste processing sites without any form of consideration for environmental protection. This condition constitutes severe health and environmental hazards and residents are continuously exposed to this. E-waste contains several hazardous substances such as lead, mercury, beryllium, cadmium, chromium and bromine flame retardants, etc., that can pollute the ecosystems with the attendant environmental health risk to wildlife and humans (Itua, 2013; Opara, 2013; Ogungbuyi et al., 2012).
An estimated 500 containers of “second-hand” electronics are imported into Nigeria every month from Europe with each container holding 500 to 800 computers and monitors representing about 400,000 arrivals every month (Terada, 2012; Puckett et al., 2005). Osibanjo and Nnorom (2011) gave other statistical values such as United Kingdom (60%), Germany (16%), China (9%), USA (3%) and others (12%). According to the authors, only 60-70% of non-functional electrical and electronic devices are repairable and reusable, while the remaining 30% are both non-functional, irreparable and constitute E-waste.
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How to cite this paper: Ajaelu, H; Agu, H. (2020). Impact of E-waste Disposal on Soil Quality in Enugu Urban, Nigeria; PM World Journal, Vol. IX, Issue VII, July. Available online at https://pmworldlibrary.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/pmwj95-Jul2020-Ajaelu-Agu-the-impact-of-e-waste-disposal-on-soil.pdf
About the Authors
Henry Chidiebere Ajaelu
Enugu, Nigeria
Henry Chidiebere Ajaelu, Ph.D. in Environmental Management and Control, MSc Facility Management, BSc Quantity Surveying and also PhD in Quantity Surveying (in View). He works as an Academic Technologist in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Enugu University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Nigeria, and is a member of the Nigerian Meteorological Society and Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveying. Email: mail@ajahigh.com.ng, ajaelu.henry@esut.edu.ng
Henry Agu
Enugu, Nigeria
Henry Agu, M.Sc ,Urban and Regional Planning, B.Sc Urban and Regional Planning. He works as an Academic Technologist in the Department of Urban and Regional Planning, Enugu University of Science and Technology (ESUT), Nigeria, and is a member of the Nigerian Institute of Town Planners . Email: agu.henry@esut.edu.ng
