Assessment of Occupational Chemical Contaminant Exposure and Health Risk in Québec’s Primary E-Waste Recycling Industry Abstract The management of electronic waste (e-waste) is a major challenge given the amount of waste and the presence of numerous substances that may be toxic for workers and the environment. E-waste includes computers and computer monitors, printers and ink cartridges, tablets, fax machines, televisions, telephones, and CD and DVD readers.In Québec, the amount of recycled e-waste grew from 1,000 tonnes in 1998 to 16,998 tonnes in 2014, and recycling is expected to increase substantially in the coming years. International studies have demonstrated workplace presence of certain metals in concentrations that exceed standards, but no scientific studies have yet been conducted in Québec on this topic.The purpose of this research project is to assess occupational exposure to chemical contaminants, metals and flame retardants, explore health risk level and document occupational health and safety practices in this industry. The hope is to reduce exposure and associated risk, and the results could be used to identify critical operations and improve procedures and as a guide in developing and implementing preventive and protective measures. Produced Under this Project Scientific Reports Primary Electronic Waste Recycling in Québec: Portrait of Occupational Health and Safety and Health Risk Assessment Research Report: R-1155-fr Video Reports and Conferences Expositions chimiques des travailleurs du recyclage électronique et portrait du risque sanitaire Conference: CF-1155 Simplified Articles Gros plan sur le recyclage électronique Volume 35, n0 2 Scientific Publications Have e-waste recycling efforts opened a Pandora’s box?: An overview of occupational health issues and challengesZayed J. , Sabrina Gravel, France Labrèche, Bakhiyi B.Source : Communication présentée à XXI World Congress on Safety and Health at Work, Singapour, Singapour. [Affiche].Occupational health and safety conditions in recycling companies: New hiring niche for workers in precarious situationsGravel S., Daniel CôtéSource : (2018). Communication présentée à 10e Congrès annuel de l'Association canadienne de recherche en santé au travail : recherche et pratique pour améliorer la santé dans un monde du travail en changement, Vancouver, BC.Recycling is not all green: Workers' exposure to metals and flame retardants in Quebec e-recycling facilitiesSabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Diamond M., Jantunen L., Lavoie J. , Nguyen L., Roberge B. , Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2018). Communication présentée à 10e Congrès annuel de l'Association canadienne de recherche en santé au travail : recherche et pratique pour améliorer la santé dans un monde du travail en changement, Vancouver, BC.Electronic waste recycling in Canada: Biomonitoring of workers’ exposure to flame retardantsSabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Lavoie J. , Roberge B. , Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2018). Communication présentée à 10e Congrès annuel de l'Association canadienne de recherche en santé au travail : recherche et pratique pour améliorer la santé dans un monde du travail en changement, Vancouver, BC.Urinary metabolites of organophosphate esters (OPEs) in electronic waste recycling workers from the province of Quebec, CanadaTraore I. T., Sabrina Gravel, Diamond M., Jantunen L., Nguyen L., Yang C., Bernstein S., Zayed J. , France Labrèche, Verner M.-A.Source : (2018). Affiche présentée à ISES-ISEE 2018: Joint Annual Meeting of the International Society of Exposure Science and the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology, Ottawa, ON.Workers’ exposure to brominated flame retardants: A glance at American and Canadian population databasesSabrina Gravel, Lavoué J., France LabrècheSource : Communication présentée à la 26th International Symposium on Epidemiology in Occupational Health: Eliminating occupational disease: Translating research into action, Édimbourg, Écosse, 2017 (p. 128). doi: 10.1136/oemed-2017-104636.336Industry, occupation and sex differences in workers’ exposure to endocrine disrupting metals in an American and a Canadian surveySabrina Gravel, Lavoué J., France LabrècheSource : Communication présentée à la 26th International Symposium on Epidemiology in Occupational Health: Eliminating occupational disease: Translating research into action, Edimbourg, Écosse. [Affiche].Electronic waste recycling in Québec, Canada: Hiring practices and occupational health and safety managementGravel S., Daniel Côté, Gladu S., France LabrècheSource : (2019). Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 76(S1), A11. doi: 10.1136/OEM-2019-EPI.30Electronic waste recycling exposure and hormone levels in workersSabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Lavoué J., Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2019). Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 76(S1), A58-A59. doi: 10.1136/OEM-2019-EPI.157Application of silicone rubber wristband for measuring exposure of Quebec e-waste workers to flame retardantsNguyen L., Sabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Jantunen L., Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France Labrèche, Diamond M.Source : (2019). Affiche présentée à 9th International Symposium on Flame Retardants BFR 2019, Montréal, QC.Is airborne concentration of BDE209 associated with serum concentration in recycling workers? Sabrina Gravel, Diamond M., Jantunen L., Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2019). Communication présentée au 9th International Symposium on Flame Retardants BFR 2019, Montréal, QC.Can silicone passive samplers be used for measuring exposure of e-waste workers to flame retardants?Nguyen L., Sabrina Gravel, France Labrèche, Bakhiyi B., Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , Jantunen L., Arrandale V. H., Diamond M.Source : (2020). Environmental Science & Technology, 54(23), 15277-15286. doi: 10.1021/acs.est.0c05240Multi-exposures to suspected endocrine disruptors in electronic waste recycling workers: Associations with thyroid and reproductive hormonesSabrina Gravel, Lavoué J., Bakhiyi B., Lavoie J. , Roberge B. , Patry L., Bouchard M., Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2020). International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health, 225. doi: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2019.113445Worker health in formal electronic waste recycling plantsDaniel Côté, Gravel S., Gladu S., Bakhiyi B., Sabrina GravelSource : (2021). International Journal of Workplace Health Management. doi: 10.1108/IJWHM-04-2020-0049Halogenated flame retardants and organophosphate esters in the air of electronic waste recycling facilities: Evidence of high concentrations and multiple exposuresSabrina Gravel, Lavoué J., Bakhiyi B., Diamond M., Jantunen L., Lavoie J. , Roberge B. , Verner M.-A., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2019). Environment International, 128, 244-253. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2019.04.027Assessment of occupational exposure to organic flame retardants: A systematic reviewSabrina Gravel, Simon Aubin, France LabrècheSource : (2019). Annals of Work Exposures and Health, 63(4), 386-406. doi: 10.1093/annweh/wxz012Exposition chimiques et conditions de travail dans le secteur du recyclage électronique au QuébecSabrina GravelSource : (2021). Communication présentée à Association québécoise pour l'hygiène la santé et la sécurité du travail (AQHSST), Montréal, QC. Tiré de https://youtu.be/CdC5PaHtUcYOverlapping vulnerabilities in workers of the electronics recycling industry formal sectorCeballos D. M., Daniel Côté, Bakhiyi B., Flynn M. A., Zayed J. , Sabrina Gravel, Herrick R. F., France LabrècheSource : (2021). Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 78(Suppl. 1). doi: 10.1136/OEM-2021-EPI.367Electronic recycling plants: Human resources and OHS managementGravel S., Daniel Côté, Gladu S., France Labrèche, Sabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Zayed J. Source : (2021). International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 14(3), 350-367. doi: 10.1108/IJWHM-06-2019-0088Overlapping vulnerabilities in workers of the electronics recycling industry formal sector: A commentaryCeballos D. M., Daniel Côté, Bakhiyi B., Flynn M. A., Zayed J. , Sabrina Gravel, Herrick R. F., France LabrècheSource : (2020). American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 63(11), 955-962. doi: 10.1002/ajim.23173Assessment of overexposure to multiple metals in electronic recycling facilities: Using air samples and biomarkers to highlight potential toxicitySabrina Gravel, Roberge B. , Patry L., Bakhiyi B., Zayed J. , Lavoué J., France LabrècheSource : (2021). Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 781(S1), A20. doi: 10.1136/OEM-2021-EPI.53Has the question of e-waste opened a Pandora's box?: An overview of unpredictable issues and challengesBakhiyi B., Sabrina Gravel, Ceballos D., Flynn M. A., Zayed J. Source : (2018). Environment International, 110, 173-192. doi: 10.1016/j.envint.2017.10.021Les enjeux de la SST dans l’industrie du recyclage des résidus électriques et électroniques : une perspective sociologique et systémiqueDaniel CôtéSource : (2022). Communication présentée à Unir la diversité pour une culture en santé : 42e Congrès annuel de l’AQHSST , Sherbrooke, QC.E-waste recycling in Canada: Workers’ exposure to metals and flame retardantsSabrina Gravel, Bakhiyi B., Bernstein S., Diamond M., Jantunen L., Lavoie J. , Nguyen L., Roberge B. , Verner M.-A., Yang C., Zayed J. , France LabrècheSource : (2018). Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 75(s2), A199. doi: 10.1136/oemed-2018-ICOHabstracts.562Exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) in American and Canadian workers: Biomonitoring data from two national surveysSabrina Gravel, Lavoué J., France LabrècheSource : (2018). Science of the Total Environment, 631-632, 1465-1471. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.025Occupational health and safety, metal exposures and multi-exposures health risk in Canadian electronic waste recycling facilitiesSabrina Gravel, Roberge B. , Mickaël Calosso, Sébastien Gagné, Lavoie J. , France LabrècheSource : (2023). Waste Management, 165, 140-149. doi: 10.1016/j.wasman.2023.04.026 Other Project(s) You May be Interested in Green jobs in Québec: definition of the sector and jobs, and assessment of the potential chemical and biological risks to worker health Additional Information Type: Project Number: 2015-0083 Status: Completed Year of completion: 2021 Research Field: Chemical and Biological Hazard Prevention Team: Joseph Zayed (Université de Montréal)France Labrèche (IRSST)Jacques Lavoie (IRSST)Marc-André Verner (Université de Montréal)Sylvie Gravel (Université du Québec à Montréal )Daniel Côté (IRSST)Jérôme Lavoué (Université de Montréal)Brigitte Roberge (IRSST)Sabrina Gravel (IRSST)