Electronic waste control and management in Ghana: A critical assessment of the law,perceptions and practices

Abstract

The aim of the study was to assess the impact of Ghana’s hazardous and e-waste control and management Act 917 of 2016 on current e-waste management practices and the level of awareness among key stakeholders (general public, repairers, wholesalers/retailers, recyclers and importers of electronic items) in the Greater Accra Region of Ghana. Both quantitative and qualitative data were collected and examined in this study. Results showed a low level (12%) of awareness among stakeholders on the e-waste legislation. Almost 13% of respondents had been educated on e-waste management. Community engagement and the mass media were the main sources of information on e-waste. Significant associations between background information of respondents and awareness level on ‘Ghana’s Act 917’ were observed. Relative to general e-waste issues, only education and stakeholder showed significant associations with e-waste legislation and management. The main e-waste disposal methods adopted by respondents were disposal at dumpsites (22.7%), repair and reuse (21.1%) and reselling (20.1%). Almost 10% of respondents made changes to their e-waste disposal practices over the past 5 years. These changes were mainly due to the economic benefits derived from reselling e-waste (37.6%) and the perceived adverse impacts of e-waste on the environment (23.9%). Overall, there is the need to intensify awareness on ‘Ghana’s Act 917’, especially issues regarding sustainable e-waste management practices.

Keywords

E-waste policy e-waste management electronic items e-waste disposal practices stakeholders’ perceptions Greater Accra Ghana

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Amfo-Otu

Bentum

Omari

(2013) Assessment of soil contamination through e-waste recycling activities in Tema community one. Environment and Pollution 2: 66.

Caravanos

Clark

Fuller

, et al. (2011) Assessing worker and environmental chemical exposure risks at an e-waste recycling and disposal site in Accra, Ghana. Journal of Health and Pollution 1: 16–25.

EPA-Ghana (2016) The Laws of Ghana: Hazardous and Waste Control and Management Act 917, 2016. Accra, Ghana: Environmental Protection Agency-Ghana. Available at: http://www.epa.gov.gh/epa/sites/default/files/downloads/publications/Hazardous%20and%20Electronic%20Waste%20Control%20and%20Mgt%20Act%20917.pdf (accessed 28 October 2021).

European Commission (2019) E-waste management in Ghana: From grave to cradle. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/international-partnerships/projects/e-waste-management-ghana-grave-cradle_en (accessed 8 July 2021).

GAD (2021) Regions and districts. In: City Population. Ghana: Administrative Divisions. Available at: http://www.citypopulation.de/en/ghana/admin/ (accessed 25 December 2021).

GSS (2021) Ghana 2021 Population and Housing Census. Ghana Statistical Services, Government of Ghana. Available at: https://www.statsghana.gov.gh/index.php?id=MjYzOTE0MjAuMzc2NQ==/webstats/4238n0op4p (accessed 25 December 2021).

Gotelli

Ellison

(2013) A Primer of Ecological Statistics, 2nd edn. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates, Inc. Publishers.

Leedy

Omrod

(2005) Practical Research: Planning and Design, 8th edn. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice Hall.

Duan

Shi

(2011) Heavy metal contamination of surface soil in electronic waste dismantling area: Site investigation and source-apportionment analysis. Waste Management & Research 29: 727–738.

10.

Manmohit

Parteek

Siby

(2018) Health risk assessment of the workers exposed to the heavy metals in e-waste recycling sites of Chandigarh and Ludhiana, Punjab, India. Chemosphere 203: 426–433.

11.

Nuwematsiko

Oporia

Nabirye

, et al. (2021) Knowledge, perceptions, and practices of electronic waste management among consumers in Kampala, Uganda. Journal of Environmental and Public Health 2021.

12.

Ohajinwa

Van Bodegom

Osibanjo

, et al. (2019) Health risks of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and metals at informal electronic waste recycling sites. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16: 906.

13.

Okoye

Odoh

(2014) Assessment of the level of awareness of e-waste management and concern for the environment amongst the populace in Onitsha, Southeastern Nigeria. Journal of Environmental Protection 5: 120–134.

14.

Owusu

Donkor

Ziwu

, et al. (2017) Public Perception of E-waste Management and Disposal Practices in Accra Metropolis, Ghana. University of Ghana.

15.

Owusu-Sekyere

Batteiger

Afoblikame

, et al (2022) Assessing data in the informal e-waste sector: The Agbogbloshie Scrapyard. Waste Management 139: 158–167.

16.

Shittu

Williams

Shaw

(2021) Global E-waste management: Can WEEE make a difference? A review of e-waste trends, legislation, contemporary issues and future challenges. Waste Management 120: 549–563.

17.

Statista (2021) Forecast Number of Mobile Users Worldwide From 2020 to 2025. Available at: https://www.statista.com/statistics/218984/number-of-global-mobile-users-since-2010/ (accessed 27 December 2021).

18.

Ramayah

Lee

JWC

Lim

(2012) Sustaining the environment through recycling: An empirical study. Journal of Environmental Management 102: 141–147.

19.

Rautela

Arya

Vishwakarma

, et al. (2021) E-waste management and its effects on the environment and human health. Science of the Total Environment 773: 145623.

20.

Robinson

(2009) E-waste: An assessment of global production and environmental impacts. Science of the Total Environment 408: 183–191.

21.

Saphores

JDM

Ogunseitan

Shapiro

(2012) Willingness to engage in a pro-environmental behavior: An analysis of e-waste recycling based on a national survey of US households. Resources, Conservation and Recycling 60: 49–63.

22.

Schumacher

Agbemabiese

(2019) Towards comprehensive e-waste legislation in the United States: Design considerations based on quantitative and qualitative assessments. Resources, Conservation and Recycling 149: 605–621.

23.

WEEE Directive (2012) Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE). In: Waste and Recycling. European Commission. Available at: https://ec.europa.eu/environment/topics/waste-and-recycling/waste-electrical-and-electronic-equipment-weee_en (accessed 25 December 2021).

24.

Ylä-Mella

Keiski

Pongrácz

(2015) Electronic waste recovery in Finland: Consumers’ perceptions towards recycling and re-use of mobile phones. Waste Management 45: 374–384.

Supplementary Material

Please find the following supplemental material available below.

For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.

For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.

0.00 MB

0.04 MB