A PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF PHYSICAL WORK EXPOSURES AMONG ELECTRONIC WASTE WORKERS AT AGBOGBLOSHIE, ACCRA GHANA

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Int J Ind Ergon
• Personal Author:
  Acquah, Augustine A. ; D'Souza, Clive ; Martin, Bernard J. ; Arko-Mensah, John ; Botwe, Paul K. ; Tettey, Prudence ; Dwomoh, Duah ; Nti, Afua Amoabeng ; Kwarteng, Lawrencia ; Takyi, Sylvia ; Quakyi, Isabella A. ; Robins, Thomas G. ; Fobil, Julius N.
• Description:
  Occupational exposure associated with unstructured, informal e-waste recycling has received very limited attention. This study aimed to quantify the occupational physical exposures among informal e-waste workers at the largest e-waste site in Africa. A cross-sectional field survey of 163 male e-waste workers was conducted using a self-report occupational physical activity questionnaire, along with direct work observations, and pedometer estimates of walking activity for a subset of workers (n = 42). Results indicated significant differences in self-reported 7-day work exposures among the three main e-waste job categories, namely, collectors (n = 70), dismantlers (n = 73) and burners (n = 20). Prolonged walking, sitting and standing on five or more days in the workweek was frequently reported by collectors (87%), dismantlers (82%) and burners (60%), respectively. Nearly 90% of collectors and burners and 60% of dismantlers reported lifting and carrying on five or more days in the workweek. The exposure combinations identified suggest a risk for musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). Findings call attention to the need for research examining potential associations between physical exposures and MSDs affecting e-waste workers in Agbogbloshie. The high exposure variability both between and within workers has implications for future exposure assessments conducted in unregulated, informal work settings.
• Subjects:
  Humans Musculoskeletal Diseases Occupational Exposure Recycling
• Keywords:
  Agbogbloshie E-waste E-waste Collection Informal Recycling OPAQ Physical Activity Exposure
• Source:
  Int J Ind Ergon. 82
• Pubmed ID:
  33767518
• Pubmed Central ID:
  PMC7986988
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  T42 OH008455/OH/NIOSH CDC HHSUnited States/ ; T42OH008455/ACL/ACL HHSUnited States/ ; U01 TW010103/TW/FIC NIH HHSUnited States/ ; U2R TW010110/TW/FIC NIH HHSUnited States/
• Place as Subject:
  Ghana
• Volume:
  82
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:bcd8408625e5bbdf94abd32481e3ccc7c5e4f2e64a6d3d9f90e56df97f05cb3a
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/104764/cdc_104764_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 409.11 KB ]