E-waste management and presentation of a suitable approach for disposal of these wastes: a case study in North of Iran, Nowshahr

摘要

The electrical and electronic wastes are growing increasingly in the developing world, and because of the presence of potential toxic substances in them and improper management, they will be hazardous to the health and environment on the one hand. On the other hand, because of the presence of precious metals, they also have an economic value. A case study was conducted in the city of Nowshahr in Mazandaran province of Iran from February 2017 to September 2017. In this study, questionnaire strategy was used for evaluation of e-waste disposal methods and presentation of suitable approaches to disposal of these wastes. General questionnaires were distributed between 200 employees of municipality, environment protection organization, environmental health office and university teachers and students and peoples with free jobs in this city. The regression and Pearson correlation coefficients of studied factors in the questionnaire were calculated by software SPSS. The results from data analysis of the questionnaire showed that effects of total factors on the main factor were significant in 1% level. Investigation of Pearson coefficients showed that 13 factors were correlated together in 1% or 5% level. According to the obtained results, awareness level of the city's citizens was low and so far, the city officials have not taken any action for education of the citizens and correct disposal of these wastes in this city. However, the citizens and the city officials agreed to establish recycling centers in this city. Overall, the results of this study indicated that e-waste recycling will be a proper approach to correct disposal of these wastes in this city.