Environment Justice and Agbogbloshie

The Problem with Agbogbloshie

Agbogbloshie use to be a wetland in Accra, Ghana, but it is now a major “e-waste dumping site”.Workers burn down plastic from e-waste to get precious metals, in particular copper. People working in Agbogbloshie’s harsh conditions may suffer from “burns, untreated wounds, eye damage, and lung and back problems which can lead to “chronic nausea, anorexia, debilitating headaches, respiratory problems developing a respiratory illness, mental or behavioral problems, immune system defects, and blood system defects from breathing in toxins and neuro-toxins. A lot of workers working at these sites die from cancer by the age of 20. When it rains these toxins are often washed into bodies of water and people consume the poisonous toxins of the e-waste.

Environment Justice

Environmental Justice is a subject that African Americans, Latinos, Asians, and Pacific Islanders usually protest about. Mainly because they live in toxic enviornments. Statistics show that those who live in some of America’s most polluted environment are African American Latinos are people who are also living in these type of environments, in the early 1960's Cesar Chavez organized a group of Latino farm workers who then protested for workplace rights which included protection against harmful pesticides in workplace environments. This is called environmental racism which is the spark of environmental justice.

Currently, in India, people are trying to spin e-waste to upcycle into gold for jewelry and watches; the new method will be eco-friendly. They also try to fix PCs and re-sell them.

To take action against the dumping of e-waste people can design sturdy electronics, use reusable energy, donating electronics that still work, and enforcing laws against illegal e-waste dumping.

http://www.nrdc.org/ej/history/hej.asp
https://ejatlas.org/conflict/e-waste-in-agbogbloshie-ghana
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/gallery/2014/feb/27/agbogbloshie-worlds-largest-e-waste-dump-in-pictures