School of Environment and Sustainability, Royal Roads University, Victoria, BC, Canada.
Department of Chemistry, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
Environ Geochem Health. 2023 Jul;45(7):4515-4531. doi: 10.1007/s10653-023-01503-0. Epub 2023 Feb 28.
Agbogbloshie in Accra, Ghana, was a center for informal e-waste recycling until it was closed recently. This study investigated the potential health risks of toxic metals (including As, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sb, and Zn) found in the surface soils based on their concentrations and in vitro bioaccessibility. Mean concentrations at the burning sites were As: 218; Cd: 65; Cr: 182; Cu: 15,841; Ni: 145; Pb: 6,106; Sb: 552; and Zn: 16,065 mg/kg while the dismantling sites had mean concentrations of As: 23; Cd: 38; Cr: 342; Cu: 3239; Ni: 96; Pb: 681; Sb: 104; and Zn: 1658 mg/kg. The findings confirmed the enrichment of potentially toxic metals at the dismantling and burning sites, exceeding international environmental soil quality guidelines. Based on the total metal concentrations, bioaccessibility, and calculated risk indices, the risks associated with incidental ingestion of soil-borne metal contaminants at the dismantling and burning sites were very high. Despite evidence of higher metal concentrations in the communities near the burning and dismantling sites, the human health risk associated with soil ingestion was significantly lower in the surrounding neighborhood.
加纳阿克拉的阿格博格布洛西（Agbogbloshie）曾经是一个非正规电子废物回收中心，直到最近才被关闭。本研究根据表面土壤中的浓度和体外生物可利用性，调查了含有的有毒金属（包括砷、镉、铜、镍、铅、锑和锌）对健康的潜在风险。燃烧点的平均浓度为：砷 218mg/kg、镉 65mg/kg、铬 182mg/kg、铜 15841mg/kg、镍 145mg/kg、铅 6106mg/kg、锑 552mg/kg 和锌 16065mg/kg；而拆解点的平均浓度为：砷 23mg/kg、镉 38mg/kg、铬 342mg/kg、铜 3239mg/kg、镍 96mg/kg、铅 681mg/kg、锑 104mg/kg 和锌 1658mg/kg。研究结果证实，拆解和燃烧点的潜在有毒金属含量丰富，超过了国际环境土壤质量指南。基于总金属浓度、生物可利用性和计算出的风险指数，拆解和燃烧点土壤中金属污染物的偶然摄入与非常高的风险相关。尽管在燃烧点和拆解点附近社区存在更高的金属浓度证据，但与土壤摄入相关的人体健康风险在周围社区明显较低。
