Mitigating Environmental and Health Risks Associated with Uncontrolled Recycling of Electronic Waste: Are International and National Regulations Effective? - Environmental Contamination: Health Risks and Ecological Restoration - page 199

TABLE 10.2
Estimated.Daily.Intakes.of.POPs.for.Adults.and.Infants.at.the.Study.Sites

EstimatedDailyIntake PopulationGroup Guiyu Taizhou Lin'an

ΣPCDD/Fs.(pg-TEQ/kg.
body.wt/day)

0.03.±.0.03c
45.8.±.36.2b
Σ 7 PBDEs.(ng/kg.bw/day) Adult ** 931.±.772a 44.7.±.26.3b 1.94.±.0.86c
Breast-fed.infant 461.±.423a 346.±.559a* 7.01.±.3.95b
Σ 37 PCBs.(ng/kg.bw/day) Adult ** 5.36.±.4.60b 92.8.±.77.5a 7.31.±.4.73b
Breast-fed.infant 46.6.±.76.9c 1779.±.2303a 568.±.529b
Sources: . Chan,.J.K.Y..et.al.,. Environ. Sci. Technol .,.41,.7668,.2007;.Chan,.J.K.Y.,.Dietary.exposure,.
human. body.loadings,.and.health.risk.assessment.of.persistent. organic.pollutants. at.
two. major. electronic. waste. recycling. sites. in. China,. PhD. thesis,. Hong. Kong. Baptist.
University,.Kowloon.Tong,.Hong.Kong,.2008;.Xing,.G.H.,.Human.exposure.and.health.
risk.assessment.of.polychlorinated.biphenyls.at.two.major.electronic.waste.recycling.
sites.in.China,.PhD.thesis,.Hong.Kong.Baptist.University,.Kowloon.Tong,.Hong.Kong,.
2008.
NA,.Not.available.
* . Exposure.from.ish.consumption.
** . Exposure.from.nine.food.groups.

Adult *
Breast-fed.infant

1.95.±.1.25a
NA

0.37.±.0.36b
103.±.67.7a

The. EDIs. of. total. TEQ. values. (502.pg/kg. bw/day). for. Taizhou. infants.
exceeded.the.FAO/WHO.tolerable.daily.intake.(70.pg.TEQ/kg/month).by.
more.than.200.times.(JECFA.2001)..Taking.into.account.the.placental.trans-
fer.of.PCBs,.this.estimation.of.risk.for.infants.in.Taizhou.could.be.underes-
timated..Such.an.acute.exposure.is.of.concern.due.to.the.long.half-lives.of.
the.compounds.that.could.impose.serious.effects.on.the.thyroid.hormone.
system. and. immunological. functions. in. infants. and. children. (Nagayama.
et.al..2007).

Epidemiological Data from Taizhou

According. to. the. epidemiological. data. for. adults. provided. by. the. Center.
for. Disease. Control. and. Prevention. in. Taizhou,. from. 2004. to. 2006,. there.
was.an.obviously.increasing.trend.in.morbidity.due.to.incidences.of.malig-
nant.tumors.and.trauma;.disorders.in.digestive,.cardiovascular,.respiratory,.
endocrine,.and.urinary.systems;.gynecological.disease;.and.ophthalmologic.
and. otolaryngological. disorder. ( p . <. 0.05).. In. addition,. the. average. rate. of.
incidence.of.cardiovascular.disease.was.signiicantly.higher.than.all.other.
disorders.(79%,. p .<.0.001),.followed.by.respiratory.(53%).and.digestive.sys-
tem.(48%).disorders.(Leung.et.al..2010,.Wong.et.al..2008)..Health.checks.on.
workers. and. children. in. Guiyu. revealed. the. prevalence. of. digestive,. neu-
rological,. and. respiratory. problems. and. high. incidences. of. bone. disease.
(Qiu.et.al..2004).
Although. only. a. limited. number. of. epidemiological. studies. on. e-waste.
recycling.sites.exist,.it.seems.reasonable.from.a.public.health.standpoint.that.