Toxic Waste Dumping in West Africa Environmental Racism
Toxic waste and electronic waste (e-waste) is generated from a wide range of industries - such as health, hydrocarbon or manufacturing - and can come in many forms, such as sludges or gas. E-waste is used electronic items that are nearing the end of their useful life, and are discarded or given to be recycled. If these types of waste aren't properly discarded they can cause serious harm to human health and the environment. Western companies and businesses target countries in the Gulf of Guinea - Nigeria, Ghana, and Côte d'Ivoire - as a dump for their toxic waste. This, despite the knowledge of the physiological and environmental effects of this waste. The dumping of toxic waste into Africa, while deliberately concealing its true content, shows that companies know it is ethically wrong. To protect communities within these countries, governments must implement the provisions of the Basel and Bamako Conventions, writes Ifesinachi Okafor-Yarwood for Conversation Africa.
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West Africa:
Toxic Waste Dumping in Gulf of Guinea Countries Amounts to Environmental Racism
The Conversation Africa, 2 December 2020
Toxic waste and electronic waste (e-waste) is generated from a wide range of industries - such as health, hydrocarbon or manufacturing - and can come in many forms, such as sludges… Read more »
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Nigeria:
Illegal Waste Dump - Lagos Declares Zero Tolerance On Cart Pushers, Arrests 13
Vanguard, 12 August 2020
The Lagos State Government, through the state Waste Management Authority, LAWMA, on Saturday, arrested at least 12 cart pushers and impounded over 50 carts in Somolu, Bariga area… Read more »
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Africa:
Our Old Cellphones, Computers and Appliances Are a Bigger Problem Than Ever. Here's What We Need to Do.
Ensia, 7 July 2020
Some things we're glad to see grow: trees, children, our bank account balance, goodwill. But other things, not so much. Read more »
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Nigeria:
Why Country Needs to Manage Electronic Waste Better
The Conversation Africa, 4 May 2020
In most of Nigeria's cities, there are visible piles of refuse that have built up on roads, river banks and swampy land. These waste dumps smell bad and are breeding grounds for… Read more »
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Cameroon:
Electronic Waste Management - Multibillion Recycling Center Opens in Yaounde
Cameroon Tribune, 25 March 2019
The Minister of Environment, Protection of Nature and Sustainable Development launched the centre on March 19, 2019. Read more »
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Electronic waste (file photo).