Impact of e-waste recycling on water and soil
This report released by Toxics Link reveals that that toxic elements including mercury, lead, zinc, along with acids and chemicals are released during e-waste recycling and are contaminating soil and water in Loni and Mandoli area of Delhi.
There have been various reports documenting practices of recycling e-waste in the country and drawing an inference of the environmental impacts of such practices. However, there is negligible data to substantiate this correlation.
This study attempts to understand the impacts of recycling practices on soil and water mediums of the neighbourhood areas and establish correlation between such practices and the resultant impacts thereof. The mediums of soil, water and air receive waste contaminants and are expected to refl ect changes in their characteristics. Due to certain practical constraints, it was not possible to collect air samples. Hence only the medium of water and soil have been considered for testing in this study.