Cook, E, Derks, M and Velis, CA orcid.org/0000-0002-1906-726X (2023) Plastic waste reprocessing for circular economy: A systematic scoping review of risks to occupational and public health from legacy substances and extrusion. Science of the Total Environment, 859 (Part 2). 160385. ISSN 0048-9697
Abstract
The global plastics reprocessing sector is likely expand as the circular economy becomes more established and efforts to curb plastic pollution increase. Via a critical systematic scoping review (PRISMA-ScR), we focused on two critical challenges for occupational and public health that will require consideration along with this expansion: (1) Legacy contamination in secondary plastics, addressing the risk of materials and substances being inherited from the previous use and carried (circulated or transferred) through into new products when reprocessed material enters its subsequent use phase (recycled, secondary plastic); and, (2) Extrusion of secondary plastics during the final stage of conventional mechanical reprocessing. Based on selected literature, we semi-quantitatively assessed nine risk scenarios and ranked them according to the comparative magnitude of risk to human health. Our analysis highlights that despite stringent regulation, industrial diligence and enforcement, occasionally small amounts of potentially hazardous substances contained in waste plastics are able to pass through established safeguards and re-enter (cascade into) the next use phase (product cycle) after being recycled. Although many of these ‘inherited’ chemical substances are present at concentrations unlikely to pose a serious and imminent threat, their existence may indicate a wider or possible increase in pollution dispersion. Our assessment indicates that the highest risk results from exposure to these substances during extrusion by mechanical reprocessors in contexts where only passive ventilation, dilution and dispersion are used as control measures. Our work sets the basis to inform improved future risk management protocols for a non-polluting circular economy for plastics.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
Keywords: | Plastic; Solid waste; Health and safety; Global South; Resource recovery; Circular economy |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Civil Engineering (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 16 Mar 2023 10:40 |
Last Modified: | 16 Mar 2023 10:40 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160385 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:197405 |