Tracking the global distribution of persistent organic pollutants accounting for e-waste exports to developing regions

Breivik, Knut and Armitage, James M. and Wania, Frank and Sweetman, Andrew J. and Jones, Kevin C. (2016) Tracking the global distribution of persistent organic pollutants accounting for e-waste exports to developing regions. Environmental Science and Technology, 50 (2). pp. 798-805. ISSN 0013-936X

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Abstract

Elevated concentrations of various industrial-use Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), have been reported in some developing areas in subtropical and tropical regions known to be destinations of e-waste. We used a recent inventory of the global generation and exports of e-waste to develop various global scale emission scenarios for industrial-use organic contaminants (IUOCs). For representative IUOCs (RIUOCs), only hypothetical emissions via passive volatilization from e-waste were considered whereas for PCBs, historical emissions throughout the chemical life-cycle (i.e., manufacturing, use, disposal) were included. The environmental transport and fate of RIUOCs and PCBs were then simulated using the BETR Global 2.0 model. Export of e-waste is expected to increase and sustain global emissions beyond the baseline scenario, which assumes no export. A comparison between model predictions and observations for PCBs in selected recipient regions generally suggests a better agreement when exports are accounted for. This study may be the first to integrate the global transport of IUOCs in waste with their long-range transport in air and water. The results call for integrated chemical management strategies on a global scale.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
Environmental Science and Technology
Additional Information:
This is an open access article published under an ACS AuthorChoice License, which permits copying and redistribution of the article or any adaptations for non-commercial purposes.
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2300/2304
Subjects:
?? environmental chemistrychemistry(all) ??
ID Code:
77478
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
19 Jan 2016 14:42
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
31 Dec 2023 00:37