Efem Nkanga
16 January 2008
analysis
Lagos — Efem Nkanga in this report writes about the challenges and health hazards posed by toxic electronics waste, called e-waste especially in the light of rising adoption of information communications technology in the country.
It is now an acknowledged fact that all over the world, the adoption of information communications technology brings a lot of desirable benefits that usher in development and helps in changing the standard of living of people especially in developing countries.
Technology has been used to perform medical, agricultural, economic and educational feats that transform how people live, work and play. But beyond the positive benefits lies its negative side. The flip side of the adoption of technology is the toxic aspects caused by the growing threat of hazardous electronics waste.
The quest for advancement and the bid by several governments to bridge the digital divide has no doubt raised concerns in some quarters as to the negative effects posed by hazardous materials in technological gadgets.
Nigeria with the tremendous growth in its level of ICT adoption in recent years is not an exception and is daily slowly and steadily being endangered by the increasing rising level of toxic waste in the polity. Seven years ago, the nation had only about 500,000 telephone lines in the country, but today the story is different and the lines have increased to more than 40 million. A recent statistics update released by the regulatory body Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) charged with overseeing the nation's telecoms sector put the number of active mobile phone subscribers at 37.9 million and fixed wireless line users at 1.4 million. There is no doubt that most of the phones being used by Nigerian subscribers are second hand because most people cannot afford the brand new expensive alternatives in the market. On the Information Technology part, it is estimated that over a quarter of a million personal computers are bought annually in the formal market. What this means is that not less than 3 million personal computers are sold in the informal market because it has recently been estimated that for every PC bought in the formal market, about 15 are bought in the informal market. With about 3.75 million computers in addition to the .25 million bought in the formal market, the total figure bought per year comes to about four million computers.
That these appliances contain toxic components is not in doubt. Some of the toxic materials are domiciled in cell phone batteries, PC monitor screens and other components, like cadmium, lead and mercury, which are classified as heavy metals.
Available statistics on electronic waste reveal that it is now the fastest-growing part of the municipal waste stream. This is not likely to decrease because technology is growing by the day and it's been predicted that between 315 million and 680 million computers will become obsolete within the next few years. The furious pace of technological advancements today is such that in some places in the United States alone, no less than 6,000 computers become obsolete each day thanks to new unfolding technologies.
Experts have warned that new innovations have the potential of triggering e Waste and making developing countries a dumping ground because more companies and individuals may feel the need to replace their existing computers sooner because of the need to upgrade to the new operating system. The ability of PCs to be easily upgraded is also important if the massive volumes of e Waste is to be prevented. Greenpeace, a body committed to the complete eradication of e Waste has been engaging manufacturers of PCs and mobile phones of late to phase out toxic substances in their products and institute take-back mechanisms for the same products at the end of their useful lives. They challenged PC manufacturers to design their products so that these may be easily upgraded, disassembled, and recycled properly to combat the menace of e Waste. This warning is timely because though computers seem very efficient and environmentally-friendly, they have hidden dangers associated with them once they become e-waste. The harmful materials contained in electronics, pose a real danger to human health if not properly processed.
Electronics like computers and cell phones contain a lot of different toxins. For example, cathode ray tubes (CRTs) in computers contain heavy metals, such as lead, barium and cadmium, which can be very harmful to health if they enter the water system. These materials can cause damage to human nervous and respiratory systems.
The dangers of this especially in the light of the fact that Nigeria has been used as a dumping ground for all sorts of second hand goods especially computers are worrisome. With a population of over 140,000,000 and still counting, Nigeria the giant of Africa is the headquarters of second hand goods. These goods range from computers to phones, used cars, fridges, household appliances like irons, blenders, freezers, to apparels and more.
Nigeria is so neck deep in this second hand scourge that it was singled out for a study conducted by a U.S. non-profit group called Basel Action Network (BAN), The Group's report was based on its investigation into electronic-waste (e-waste) dumping in Lagos, Nigeria. The report titled "the Digital dump: Exporting Re-use and Abuse to Africa" examined several indices that propel developed countries to use developing countries as a refuse dump in the name of bridging the digital divide.
The Network in a report released after the study of Lagos Nigeria known as a dumping ground for all things sub-standard highlighted the dangers of eWaste and called on governments globally to pressure electronics manufacturers to remove toxic chemicals from their products to minimize the negative effects of eWaste.
The Basel Action Network (BAN), based in Seattle, involves a worldwide network of environmental activists focused on confronting the excesses of unbridled free trade in form of 'Toxic Trade' and its devastating impact on global environmental justice. The group focuses on human rights and the environment and aims to heighten awareness about, and prevent the dumping of toxic waste and pollution in poor and developing countries. The report added that though all of the major U.S. PC vendors have recycling programs in place for used IT equipment, such products are often sold to brokers for disposal and wind up in countries such as Nigeria where they don't assist in bridging the existing digital divide but end up constituting an environmental hazard dangerous to health.
It is a fact that our borders have been thrown open to some countries for the entrance of these goods. The obsolete computers and phones when they find their way into the country end up at the popular village for computers in Lagos were the components are dismantled and retooled for onward sales to the unwary. Some people have stressed that developing nations will continue to be a dumping ground for wastes and substandard goods because of the endemic poverty bedevilling the land.
Because folks in these areas are so poor, they open their arms and their borders in gratitude to mediocrity and rubbish in the name of second hand, which might in effect be third or fourth hand. They conveniently forget that a nation does not have to accept anything because it is poor especially if the end result will be negative.
The Federal Government should step in and curtail this trend by putting a blanket on the importation of second hand goods that do no one any good at the end of the day. Also, PC and phone manufacturers should strive to remove toxic chemicals from their products at source. Countries should also adhere strictly to the Basel Convention treaty before exporting their products into developing countries.
The Federal Government apart from stopping obsolete goods from finding their way into the country should also ensure that adequate waste management policies are put in place to protect the environment. There is no alternative to breathing clean air and drinking clean, unpolluted water. The fear of e Waste is the beginning of wisdom.
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