Hope and fear as tourists trickle back to Kashmir town after attack    Spain and Portugal scramble to restore power as officials chase cause of outage    Israel spy chief to step down after row with Netanyahu exposes deepening rifts    Saudi, Omani foreign ministers visit Rub' Al-Khali border crossing    From his own resources... Luminous lessons in leadership and humanity    Commerce Ministry recalls 6,500 Genesis cars due to risk of fire    Royal Institute of Traditional Arts implements Saudi-Chinese cultural exchange program    Localization in Saudi military industries rises to 19.35%    Logistics park for vehicles worth SR300 million to be set up at Dammam port    HONOR KSA expands its presence with new flagship Experience Store in Riyadh HONOR's first flagship store in KSA provides visitors with a premium experience, exciting offers and free services    Prince Sultan University launches first bachelor's program in language and media    Putin announces three-day Russian ceasefire in Ukraine from 8 May    Al-Falih: Eastern Province hosts 700 investment opportunities worth SR330 billion    Rock & Roll Hall of Fame picks Outkast but not Oasis    Duran leads Al Nassr past Yokohama Marinos into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Al Ahli cruise past Buriram into AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi orchestra to perform at Sydney Opera House in May    Al Hilal thrash Gwangju to reach AFC Champions League Elite semi-finals    Saudi Theater Commission launches its Work and Learn Project in UK    The season has begun — and one comment shook us all    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Veteran Bollywood actor Manoj Kumar dies at 87    Bollywood actress vindicated over boyfriend's death after media hounding    Grand Mufti rules against posting prayers and preaching in mosques on social media    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



'Digital dumpsites' study highlights growing threat to children: WHO
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 16 - 06 - 2021

The health of children, adolescents and expectant mothers worldwide is at risk from the illegal processing of old electrical or electronic devices, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday, in a landmark new report on the toxic threat.
In a statement coinciding with the launch, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the health threat was growing, in line with the "mounting 'tsunami of e-waste'".
"In the same way the world has rallied to protect the seas and their ecosystems from plastic and microplastic pollution, we need to rally to protect our most valuable resource — the health of our children — from the growing threat of e-waste", he added.
A growing pile
Discarded electronic devices, or e-waste, has become the fastest growing domestic waste category in the world, according to the UN health agency.
The Global E-waste Statistics Partnership (GESP) said that of the 53.6 million tons produced worldwide in 2019, only 17.4 percent was recorded as collected and appropriately recycled.
While the fate of the remaining e-waste is unknown, it is unlikely to have been managed and recycled in an environmentally-sound manner.
Hazards on the heap
While some e-waste ends up in landfills, significant amounts are often illegally shipped to low and middle-income countries where informal workers, including children and adolescents, pick through, dismantle, or use acid baths to extract valuable metals and materials from the discarded items.
WHO said that an estimated 12.9 million women who work in the informal waste sector are potentially exposing themselves and their unborn children to toxic residue.
Additionally, more than 18 million youngsters globally — and some as young as five — are said to be "actively engaged" in the wider industrial sector, of which e-waste processing is a small part.
'Devastating' impact
Informal methods of removing materials from e-waste have been linked to a range of health effects, especially in children, WHO said.
Recycling e-waste particularly impacts those in vital stages of physical and neurological development, with children, adolescents and pregnant women most vulnerable.
Children are more susceptible to the toxic chemicals because they absorb pollutants relative to their size and, with not-fully-developed organs, are less able than adults to eradicate harmful substances.
"Improper e-waste management is...a rising issue that many countries do not recognize yet as a health problem", said WHO lead author, Marie-Noel Brune Drisse, warning that if action is not taken now, "its impacts will have a devastating health effect on children and lay a heavy burden on the health sector in the years to come".
Call to action
The Children and Digital Dumpsites report delves into the multiple dimensions of the problem, to practical action that the health sector and others concerned, can take to confront the insidious health risk.
It calls for binding action by exporters, importers and governments to ensure environmentally sound disposal of e-waste and the health and safety of workers and communities.
The health sector is also being asked to reduce adverse effects from e-waste by building up capacity to diagnose, monitor and prevent toxic exposure, and to advocate for better data and health research on risks faced by informal e-waste workers.
"Children and adolescents have the right to grow and learn in a healthy environment, and exposure to electrical and electronic waste and its many toxic components unquestionably impacts that right", said Maria Neira, WHO Director of the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Health.
"The health sector can play a role by providing leadership and advocacy, conducting research, influencing policy-makers, engaging communities, and reaching out to other sectors to demand that health concerns be made central to e-waste policies." — UN News


Clic here to read the story from its source.