Principal investigator: Richard (Rick) Neitzel
Co-Invesigator: Jesse Austin-Breneman, Achyuta Adhvaryu, and Kowit Nambunmee
Source of funding: UM Institutional Funing – MCubed 3.0
Description: Discarded products that contain electronic or electrical parts are considered electronic waste (e-waste). High-income countries often export electronic waste to be recycled in less expensive settings resulting in economic opportunities for workers in low-income communities. However, current informal recycling methods, which use crude tools and methods, create many health and safety hazards for both the worker and their community, effectively resulting in a global transfer of human health risks.
This applied research project will develop and pilot test an intervention to improve recycling methods among informal e-waste recycling workers in Thailand. Through an interdisciplinary system analysis, the intervention will be designed to optimize specific e-waste recycling tools and methods in order to reduce waste, improve profitability, and enhance worker safety and health. The intervention design will take into account the unique operating context of informal e-waste recycling workers in Thailand, but will ideally be generalizable to other e-waste recycling settings in low- and middle-income countries.
Papers:
- Metal levels, genetic instability, and renal markers in electronic waste worker from Thailand.
- Analysis of e-waste recycling behavior based on survey at a Midwestern US University
- Self-Reported Health and Metal Body Burden in an Electronic Waste Recycling Community in Kalasin, Thailand
- A review of biomarkers used for assessing human exposure to metals from e-waste.
- Stress, Health, Noise Exposures, and Injuries Among Electronic Waste Recycling Workers in Ghana
- Health assessment of electronic waste workers in Chile: study design and participant characterization
- Multiple Elemental Exposures Amongst Individuals at the Agbogbloshie Electronic Waste (E-Waste) Site in Ghana
- Heart rate, stress, and occupational noise exposure among electronic waste recycling workers.
- Health Seeking Behaviours among Electronic Waste Workers in Ghana
Photos of Ghana E-Waste 2014
Photos of Stone Processing in Thailand 2015
Photos of Thailand E-Waste 2016
Exposure Research Lab 