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Informal e-waste recycling: environmental risk assessment of heavy metal contamination in Mandoli industrial area, Delhi, India

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Abstract

Nowadays, e-waste is a major source of environmental problems and opportunities due to presence of hazardous elements and precious metals. This study was aimed to evaluate the pollution risk of heavy metal contamination by informal recycling of e-waste. Environmental risk assessment was determined using multivariate statistical analysis, index of geoaccumulation, enrichment factor, contamination factor, degree of contamination and pollution load index by analysing heavy metals in surface soils, plants and groundwater samples collected from and around informal recycling workshops in Mandoli industrial area, Delhi, India. Concentrations of heavy metals like As (17.08 mg/kg), Cd (1.29 mg/kg), Cu (115.50 mg/kg), Pb (2,645.31 mg/kg), Se (12.67 mg/kg) and Zn (776.84 mg/kg) were higher in surface soils of e-waste recycling areas compared to those in reference site. Level exceeded the values suggested by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). High accumulations of heavy metals were also observed in the native plant samples (Cynodon dactylon) of e-waste recycling areas. The groundwater samples collected form recycling area had high heavy metal concentrations as compared to permissible limit of Indian Standards and maximum allowable limit of WHO guidelines for drinking water. Multivariate analysis and risk assessment studies based on total metal content explains the clear-cut differences among sampling sites and a strong evidence of heavy metal pollution because of informal recycling of e-waste. This study put forward that prolonged informal recycling of e-waste may accumulate high concentration of heavy metals in surface soils, plants and groundwater, which will be a matter of concern for both environmental and occupational hazards. This warrants an immediate need of remedial measures to reduce the heavy metal contamination of e-waste recycling sites.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MOEF), Government of India for financial support to carry out this research (Grant No. 19-46/2007-RE). Special thanks to the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions to improve the quality of the paper. The authors thank the management of Jaypee University of Information Technology for providing suitable infrastructure for conducting these experiments.

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  1. Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Jaypee University of Information Technology, Waknaghat, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, 173234, India

    Jatindra Kumar Pradhan & Sudhir Kumar

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  1. Jatindra Kumar Pradhan
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Correspondence to Sudhir Kumar.

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Responsible editor: Vera Slaveykova

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Pradhan, J.K., Kumar, S. Informal e-waste recycling: environmental risk assessment of heavy metal contamination in Mandoli industrial area, Delhi, India. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 7913–7928 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-2713-2

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