As e-waste continue to pose health problem to the international communities, especially the third world countries, Greenpeace has called on the world’s electronics companies to eliminate hazardous chemicals from their products, saying toxic waste from wealthy nations’ gadgets ends up being dumped in poor countries despite laws prohibiting it.The environmental watchdog made the appeal in a new report on the electronic waste trade, which it said was spreading from Asia to West Africa – particularly Ghana, where discarded TVs and computers that contain toxic materials are being dismantled by children as young as 5.
http://vanguardngr.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=14706
http://allafrica.com/stories/200808200424.htmlPoisoning the poor – Electronic Waste in Ghana [news release]
The latest place where we have discovered high tech toxic trash causing horrendous pollution is in Ghana. Our analysis of samples taken from two electronic waste (e-waste) scrap yards in Ghana has revealed severe contamination with hazardous chemicals.The ever-growing demand for the latest fashionable mobile phone, flat screen TV or super-fast computer creates ever larger amounts of obsolete electronics that are often laden with toxic chemicals like lead, mercury and brominated flame retardants. Rather than being safely recycled, much of this e-waste gets dumped in developing countries. Previously, we have exposed pollution from e-waste scrap yards in China and India. Nigeria has also been identified as a dumping ground for old electronics.
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/poisoning-the-poor-electroni