Publication Details |
| Category | Text Publication |
| Reference Category | Journals |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.hazadv.2026.101352 |
Licence  |
|
| Title (Primary) | Integrating toxicological intelligence into global e-waste governance: From material recovery to health-protective circularity |
| Author | Eze, T.C.; Eze, O.O.; Okeke, E.S.; Ezeorba, T.P.C.; Akatakpo, S.; Ogbuene, E.B.; Ugochukwu, T.E.; Nwagwe, R.O.; Otitoloju, A.A.; Gao, P.; Michelangeli, F.; Stopper, H.; Pohjanvirta, R.; Heipieper, H.J.
; Weindl, G.; Vinken, M. |
| Source Titel | Journal of Hazardous Materials Advances |
| Year | 2026 |
| Department | ETOX; MEB |
| Volume | 23 |
| Page From | art. 101352 |
| Language | englisch |
| Topic | T7 Bioeconomy T9 Healthy Planet |
| Supplements | Supplement 1 |
| Keywords | e-waste; risk assessment; mixture toxicity; circular economy; SSbD; NAMs |
| Abstract | The rapid growth of electrical and electronic equipment production and disposal have positioned e-waste at the intersection of environmental contamination, public health risk, and circular economy policy. This review synthesizes global evidence on environmental contamination and biomonitoring data to examine how chemical exposures from e-waste-impacted ecosystems translate into human and ecological health risks. We identify dominant contaminant profiles across environmental compartments, highlighting spatial disparities in exposure burdens, and evaluate documented associations with adverse biological outcomes. While circular economy strategies are increasingly promoted to address material recovery and resource efficiency, there are persistent toxicological blind spots in current e-waste management paradigms. Recycling technologies are rarely assessed for their potential to generate secondary emissions, transformation products, or regrettable substitutions. Therefore, a transformation toward truly sustainable circularity requires systematic integration of hazard identification, exposure science, and lifecycle-based risk assessment into innovation and policy frameworks. To this end, the applicability and limitations of safe-and-sustainable-by-design approaches and new approach methodologies for anticipatory chemical safety evaluation within circular e-waste systems are critically examined. There is a clear need for harmonized toxicological reference values to prevent the recirculation of hazardous substances in secondary material streams. Future advancement toward toxicologically informed circularity depends on reframing circular economy policy from a predominantly resource-efficiency paradigm to a health-centered systems approach. Embedding structured, hazard-informed assessment across the electrical and electronic equipment value chain and e-waste life cycle can help mitigate long-term human and ecological risks while supporting innovation aligned with environmental integrity and global justice. |
| Eze, T.C., Eze, O.O., Okeke, E.S., Ezeorba, T.P.C., Akatakpo, S., Ogbuene, E.B., Ugochukwu, T.E., Nwagwe, R.O., Otitoloju, A.A., Gao, P., Michelangeli, F., Stopper, H., Pohjanvirta, R., Heipieper, H.J., Weindl, G., Vinken, M. (2026): Integrating toxicological intelligence into global e-waste governance: From material recovery to health-protective circularity J. Hazard. Mater. Adv. 23 , art. 101352 10.1016/j.hazadv.2026.101352 |
|