This paper reviews e-waste practices and aggregates the toxicity levels of organic compounds in different environmental media and human body fluids resulting from e-waste recycling activities in Ghana. Literature was searched from three academic databases (Science Direct, SpringerLink and PUBMED). Research articles published in English from 2010 to 2018 were selected in addition to reports of country studies. In all, 13 documents passed the inclusion criteria. E-waste recycling practices in Ghana were found to be mainly rudimentary. The major organic contaminants found in soils, air, sediments, food and body fluids of people exposed to e-waste recycling activities are PAHs, PCBs, Dioxin-like PCBs, PCDD/Fs, PBDD/Fs and PBDEs. The concentration of PCBs in the blood of e-waste workers and breast milk of nursing mothers at the recycling areas were respectively 0.082 µg/g (blood) and 3.64 ng/g lipid wt (breast milk). PAH was 3.94 µg/g creatinine in the urine of e-waste workers and 4,822 ng/g (median) in the soils at open burning areas. PCDD/F was 12.1 pg/g lipid base WHO₂₀₀₅-TEQ per year in the blood of e-waste workers and 988 pg TEQ/g in sediments of a shallow lagoon near the largest e-waste recycling site. Further studies are required to establish the levels of organic contaminants in air, water and foodstuffs at e-waste recycling sites and body burdens of children living or illegally working at e-waste recycling sites.

A pilot composting project was initiated as part of a 200 tons/day solid waste recycling plant with active involvement of several local stakeholders. The project aimed at introducing compost production and use in the village of Al Jalameh, Palestine. This paper describes the successes and lessons from the pilot project.

The environmental impact of small-scale palm oil processing mills in Ghana has come under serious questioning, especially the disposal of wastewater generated from their operations. This chapter describes the small-scale palm oil production operations in Ghana to highlight the associated environmental problems arising from the disposal of wastewater and other waste by-products. The chapter further discusses the effluent discharge permitting arrangements and possible modifications to the production practices and policy interventions that could improve their environmental compliance and encourage resource recovery. The data in this chapter was obtained from a survey of selected small-scale palm oil processing mills in Ghana, laboratory analysis of wastewater samples from processing mills and review of related literature. Wastewater generated from the processing activities is currently disposed of without any form of treatment. The characteristics of wastewater indicate the need for treatment before disposal. Treatment technologies that could achieve resource recovery (such as biogas, compost, earthworm biomass) and fit into the framework of circular economy should be explored.

This study characterised faecal sludge from public ventilated improved pit (VIP) latrines in Cape Coast to assess their potential impact on the environment and to guide the selection of appropriate management solutions. The paper also estimates the amount of beneficial resources wasted due to the lack of a faecal sludge (FS) treatment facility. The study employed a quantitative design involving laboratory analysis of FS sampled from 13 purposively sampled VIP latrines in Cape Coast, Ghana. Sampling activities were carried out in January and February (dry season) and September and October (wet season) of 2015. Samples of unhardened pit latrine sludge were collected from all 13 pit latrines for quality assessment. Physicochemical parameters (moisture content, COD, BOD₅, total solids and total volatile solids) of homogenous samples from the surface, middle and bottom of pit contents were analysed following standard procedures. Apart from total solids, all other parameters decreased with the depth of sampling and the differences were statistically significant (p<.01). Seasonal variation in faecal sludge characteristics was not significant except for BOD₅. A high COD: BOD₅ (3.8-4.5:1) shows faecal sludge that is characterised by slowly degradable organic matter. Even though the FS at the bottom of the pits was found to be the most stabilized, its characteristic parameters indicate that discharging it into the environment without any further treatment would pose a significant threat to public health. The characteristics suggest that co-composting would be the most appropriate option for treating the FS and also underscore the fact that the VIP latrine technology is not suitable for use as a public toilet.