title: A review of environmental fate, body burdens, and human health risk assessment of PCDD/Fs at two typical electronic waste recycling sites in China.
abstract: This paper reviews the levels of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in different environmental media, human body burdens and health risk assessment results at e-waste recycling sites in China. To provide an indication of the seriousness of the pollution levels in the e-waste recycling sites in China, the data are compared with guidelines and available existing data for other areas. The comparison clearly shows that PCDD/Fs derived from the recycling processes lead to serious pollution in different environmental compartments (such as air, soil, sediment, dust and biota) and heavy body burdens. Of all kinds of e-waste recycling operations, open burning of e-waste and acid leaching activities are identified as the major sources of PCDD/Fs. Deriving from the published data, the estimated total exposure doses via dietary intake, inhalation, soil/dust ingestion and dermal contact are calculated for adults, children and breast-fed infants living in two major e-waste processing locations in China. The values ranged from 5.59 to 105.16 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bw/day, exceeding the tolerable daily intakes recommended by the WHO (1-4 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bw/day). Dietary intake is the most important exposure route for infants, children and adults living in these sites, contributing 60-99% of the total intakes. Inhalation is the second major exposure route, accounted for 12-30% of the total exposure doses of children and adults. In order to protect the environment and human health, there is an urgent need to control and monitor the informal e-waste recycling operations. Knowledge gaps, such as comprehensive dietary exposure data, epidemiological and clinical studies, body burdens of infants and children, and kinetics about PCDD/Fs partitions among different human tissues should be addressed.
authors.affiliation: School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: chanjky@hku.hk.
authors.forename: Janet Kit Yan
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Ming H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Wong
mesh_terms: D001572:Benzofurans / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis*; D001822:Body Burden; D002681:China; D055615:Electrical Equipment and Supplies / Q000009:adverse effects; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000032:analysis*; D006801:Humans; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000032:analysis; D059027:Recycling; D012037:Refuse Disposal; D018570:Risk Assessment; D064091:Waste Disposal Facilities
chemical_list: D001572:Benzofurans; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; C023614:dibenzofuran