Work Task Association with Lead Urine and Blood Concentrations in Informal Electronic Waste Recyclers in Thailand and Chile

Abstract

The informal recycling of electronic waste (“e-waste”) is a lucrative business for workers in low- and middle-income countries across the globe. Workers dismantle e-waste to recover valuable materials that can be sold for income. However, workers expose themselves and the surrounding environment to hazardous agents during the process, including toxic metals like lead (Pb). To assess which tools, tasks, and job characteristics result in higher concentrations of urine and blood lead levels among workers, ten random samples of 2 min video clips were analyzed per participant from video recordings of workers at e-waste recycling sites in Thailand and Chile to enumerate potential predictors of lead burden. Blood and urine samples were collected from participants to measure lead concentration. Boosted regression trees (BRTs) were run to determine the relative importance of video-derived work variables and demographics, and their relationship with the urine and blood concentrations. Of 45 variables considered, five job characteristics consisting of close-toed shoes (relative importance of 43.9%), the use of blunt striking instruments (14%), bending the back (5.7%), dismantling random parts (4.4%), and bending the neck (3.5%) were observed to be the most important predictors of urinary Pb levels. A further five job characteristics, including lifting objects <20 lbs. (6.2%), the use of screwdrivers (4.2%), the use of pliers/scissors (4.2%), repetitive arm motion (3.3%), and lifting objects >20 pounds (3.2%) were observed to be among the most important factors of blood Pb levels. Overall, our findings indicate ten job characteristics that may strongly influence Pb levels in e-waste recycling workers’ urine and blood.

Seguridad ocupacional en riesgo: análisis de las condiciones laborales de los recicladores en Sudamérica [Occupational safety at risk: an analysis of waste pickers' working conditions in South America]

“…La implementación de intervenciones focalizadas en estos factores podría contribuir a la reducción de los niveles de Pb en los trabajadores informales del reciclaje de residuos electrónicos. Además, para futuras investigaciones, se sugiere evaluar metales tóxicos distintos del Pb y considerar las exposiciones a múltiples metales (Shkembi, et al, 2021).…”

“…Mientras que en Bogotá se identifican riesgos físicos como temperaturas extremas (Rojas & Vásquez, 2020), en Sao Paulo, Brasil, la exposición a concentraciones de mercurio es una preocupación destacada (Gouveia, et al, 2019). En Chile, se abordan los riesgos asociados a la exposición al plomo, señalando la necesidad de intervenciones focalizadas en factores específicos (Shkembi, et al, 2021).…”

Blood Lead Levels among Non-Occupationally Exposed Pregnant Women in Southern Thailand

“…A study by Hwang [ 30 ] corroborates this, discovering that BLLs in children in very high HDI countries were lower than countries with lower HDI levels, which explains the variation in BLLs in pregnant women across different countries. Previous studies in Thailand, primarily focused on worker and children’s groups, showed that the factors related to BLLs included occupation, environment, and living near factory plants or fishing communities [ 17 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]; however, there were no data concerning factors related to BLLs in pregnant women. In this study, we examined demographic factors, consumer goods factors, and supplement intake factors.…”

E-waste scenario in South-Asia: an emerging risk to environment and public health

“…Lack of public awareness of the hazardous nature of e-waste and proper disposing/handling mechanisms are the few other reasons for irresponsible behaviour [ 13 , 27 , 55 ]. The public is considering e-waste as regular solid waste and mix with other household waste, throw away in unoccupied areas, burning, and burying are some of the major practices, which eventually contribute to environmental and human hazards rather than informal urban mining [ 56 ]. The challenges were compounded by handing over residential, business, and institutional e-waste to informal collectors.…”