Presence of elements associated with e-waste in teenagers living in Alcalá de Henares (Spain)

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Electronic and technological waste (e-waste) is growing fast in parallel with economic and technological development. Inappropriate disposal or processing of e-waste can have severe implications for the environment, with unknown harmful effects in humans. As a result, a human monitoring programme was performed to determine the exposure to elements commonly found in technology, specifically silver (Ag), antimony (Sb), bismuth (Bi) and neodymium (Nd), in Alcalá de Henares (Community of Madrid, Spain). METHODS: Scalp hair was collected from 96 adolescents (13-16 years-old; 28 boys and 68 girls) living in Alcalá, who were recruited following strict selection criteria to minimise the effect of confounding factors. Elements were analysed by ICP-MS in processed samples following appropriate methodologies. Data was processed using statistical methods applied to censored data available in the ‘NADA’ statistical package. RESULTS:The concentrations in scalp hair were as follows [data is presented as median and interquartile range (IQR) in µg/g]: Ag 0.065 (0.030, 0.222), Sb 0.009 (0.006, 0.015) and Bi 0.002 (0.001, 0.005). As Nd was detected only in 3.1% of the monitored samples, only the 97.5th percentile is provided for this element (0.013 µg/g). Only the levels of Ag showed sex dependency (p0.001), being higher in female participants (median values; 0.103 vs. 0.036), which is in agreement with the literature. The presence of these elements were lower relative to those reported in scalp hair from young adults from the Community of Madrid and also Italy, which indicate that Alcalá’s adolescents would have not been generally exposed to e-waste. Our results also might indicate minimal exposure to Nd, as the range found (0.015-0.030 µg/g) was much lower than that reported in exposed Chinese adolescents aged 11-15 (0.09-5.27 µg/g). CONCLUSIONS:Adolescents living in Alcalá de Henares should be regarded as a neglected risk group for e-waste exposure. KEYWORDS: E-waste, human hair, monitoring, Spanish teenagers, exposure.