Exposure of Electronics Dismantling Workers to Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers, Polychlorinated Biphenyls, and Organochlorine Pesticides in South China

TLDR

China’s rapid growth has made it a global hub for dismantling electronic waste, where discarded devices are processed and discarded. Serum levels of PBDEs, PCBs, and OCPs were measured in residents of Guiyu, a major e‑waste dismantling area, and compared to a fishing‑industry dominated control region, Haojiang. Serum PBDE and OCP concentrations were markedly higher in Guiyu than in Haojiang, with PBDEs comprising 46 % of organohalogen chemicals in Guiyu versus 8.7 % in Haojiang, while PCBs did not differ; the median BDE‑209 concentration in Guiyu was 50–200 × higher than in other occupationally exposed populations and reached 3100 ng/g lipid, the highest ever reported, and PBDEs showed no correlation with PCBs or OCPs, indicating distinct sources and suggesting atmospheric transport may explain elevated levels in Haojiang. Study conducted in the People's Republic of China.

Abstract

In P.R. China, electronic waste (e-waste) from across the world is dismantled and discarded. Concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) were measured in serum from residents of an e-waste dismantling region (Guiyu, South China), where 80% of families work in e-waste recycling, and compared to a matching cohort from a nearby region where the fishing industry dominates (Haojiang). Serum concentrations of PBDEs and OCPs, but not PCBs, were significantly different in the two regions: the median ΣPBDE concentration was 3 times higher in Guiyu than Haojiang, whereas the opposite was true for dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT). PBDEs typically accounted for 46% of the total organohalogen chemicals in samples from Guiyu, but 8.7% in Haojiang. The median BDE-209 concentration in Guiyu was 50−200 times higher than previously reported in occupationally exposed populations. The highest BDE-209 concentration was 3100 ng/g lipid, the highest yet reported in humans. Serum PBDE concentrations did not correlate with PCBs or OCPs, whereas PCBs and OCPs showed positive correlations, suggesting that sources of PBDEs to humans are different from PCBs and OCPs. The levels of PBDEs in individuals from Haojiang are possibly related to the recycling activity at Guiyu, through atmospheric transport.