The impact of electronic-electrical waste on human health and environment: A systematic literature review

Abstract

Sub-Saharan Africa has become one of the leading destinations for used equipment or Electronic-Electrical waste (e-waste-or-EEW) from developed economies, making its management more urgent than ever. Most studies have articulated the serious impact of e-waste disposal to the environment and public human health. Little attention or consideration has been devoted to the management of e-waste in Uganda despite the existence of laws, policies, and guidelines. Comparatively, much more attention has been paid on the disposal of plastics. In this study, using systematic literature review (SLR), the effect of irresponsible e-waste recycling and disposal on the environment and human health were amplified. Initially, articles were retrieved from four electronic databases using keywords on the environmental and health impact of e-waste and zeroed on only Google scholar and Science Direct because they constituted over 90 percent of the identified articles. Consequently, 35 papers were selected and analyzed from 8,319 papers that were assessed for eligibility to address the research questions. The SLR revealed plausible results associated with irresponsible disposal and exposure to e-waste. Specifically, the outcomes include premature births, abortions, damage to the kidney, the nervous and blood systems, skin diseases, lung cancer, respiratory disorders, and chronic brain damage. Toxic elements are detrimental to the environment since they affect the food system and water systems. Consequently, practical and technological solutions were provided and recommendations to minimize future catastrophe from e-waste to policymakers, theoretical contributions and prospects for future research were made.