THE KNOWLEDGE LEVELS AND OPINIONS OF ACADEMICS FROM KARADENIZ TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY VOCATIONAL SCHOOLS, ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY FACULTIES REGARDING ELECTRONIC WASTES AND THEIR EFFECTS ON HUMAN AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

Yıl 2022, Cilt: 7 Sayı: 3, 422 - 435, 20.10.2022

Nalan Özen , Murat Topbaş , Medine Gözde Üstündağ , Nazım Ercüment Beyhun , Sevil Turhan

https://doi.org/10.35232/estudamhsd.1039165

Öz

The useful life of electrical and electronic devices is rapidly ending, there is a rapid transition to new products, and a new type of waste
known as electronic waste (e-waste) emerges. The aim of this study was to examine the knowledge and opinions of academics
concerning e-waste regulations in Turkey and the effects of e-waste on human and environmental health. This study involved 267
academics working at Karadeniz Technical University. An online questionnaire consisting of 50 questions was used for data collection.
The Mann Whitney U, Kruskal Wallis, Pearson chi-square, Fisher's Exact test, and Spearman correlation were used for statistical
analysis. Analysis showed that 45.3% of the participants reported not paying attention to the recycling, with 90.1% of those being
unaware of the procedures involved. Only 4.9% of the participants had received education concerning e-waste. Participants who had
received such education registered significantly higher mean total knowledge scores concerning e-waste regulations and the effects of
e-waste on human and environmental health than those with no such education (p<0.001). Mean total knowledge scores were
significantly higher among participants who paid attention to the recycling (p<0.001). Few participants have received education on
e-waste, about half of them don’t pay attention to recycling and a large part of those who don’t pay attention are unaware of the relevant
procedures. The high mean of knowledge scores among participants who paid attention to e-waste and contributed to recycling reveals
the importance of policies and education programs aimed at increasing individual awareness and producing desired behaviors.
Keywords: Electronic waste, environmental health, public health, recycling.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Electronic waste, Environmental Health, Public Health, Recycling

Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi Meslek Yüksek Okulları, Mühendislik ve Teknoloji Fakülteleri Akademisyenlerinin Elektronik Atıklar ve Bu Atıkların İnsan ve Çevre Sağlığına Etkileri Hakkındaki Bilgi Düzeyleri ve Düşünceleri

Öz

Elektrikli ve elektronik cihazların kullanım ömürleri hızlı dolmakta, yeni ürünlere hızlı geçiş olmakta ve elektronik atık (e-atık) olarak
bilinen yeni bir atık türü ortaya çıkmaktadır. Çalışmanın amacı, akademisyenlerin ülkemizdeki e-atık düzenlemeleri ile e-atıkların insan
ve çevre sağlığına etkileri konusundaki bilgi ve düşüncelerini incelemektir. Bu çalışma Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi'nde görev yapan
akademisyenler üzerinde gerçekleştirilmiş ve çalışmaya 267 akademisyen dahil edilmiştir. Veri toplamak için 50 sorudan oluşan
çevrimiçi bir anket kullanılmıştır. İstatistiksel analiz için Mann Whitney U, Kruskall Wallis, Pearson ki-kare, Fisher's Exact Test ve
Spearman korelasyon analizi kullanılmıştır. Katılımcıların %45,3'ü e-atık geri dönüşümüne dikkat etmediğini, e-atık geri dönüşümüne
dikkat etmeyenlerin ise %90,1'i ülkemizdeki uygulamaları bilmediğini belirtmiştir. Katılımcıların sadece %4,9'u e-atık konusunda eğitim
almıştır. Eğitim alanların ülkemizdeki e-atık mevzuatı ve e-atıkların insan ve çevre sağlığına etkileri konusundaki toplam bilgi puan
ortalamaları eğitim almayanlara göre istatistiksel olarak önemli bir şekilde yüksek bulunmuştur (p<0,001). Benzer şekilde, e-atıkların
geri dönüşümüne dikkat edenlerin toplam bilgi puan ortalaması geri dönüşüm konusuna dikkat etmeyenlere göre önemli bir şekilde
yüksek bulunmuştur (p<0,001). Çok az katılımcı e-atık konusunda eğitim almış olup katılımcıların yaklaşık yarısı geri dönüşüme dikkat
etmemektedir ve geri dönüşümüne dikkat etmeyenlerin büyük bir bölümü uygulamaları bilmemektedir. E-atık konusuna önem veren ve
geri dönüşüme katkı sağlayanların bilgi puanlarının yüksek olması, bireysel farkındalığı artırmak ve istendik yönde davranışları
oluşturmak için uygulanacak politikaların ve eğitim programlarının önemini ortaya koymaktadır.
Anahtar kelimeler: Çevre sağlığı, elektronik atık, geri dönüşüm, halk sağlığı.

Anahtar Kelimeler

Elektronik atık, Çevre sağlığı, Halk sağlığı, Geri dönüşüm

Kaynakça

• 1. Yılmaz Aydın Ç. Electronic waste and envıronmental health. Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Health Sciences Journal. 2017;1(1):43-52. Retrieved from: https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/ amusbfd/issue/30708/334620
• 2. Baldé CP, Forti V, Gray V., Kuehr R & Stegmann P. The global e-waste monitor 2017: Quantities, flows and resources. United Nations University, International Telecommunication Union, and International Solid Waste Association. 2017.
• 3. Perkins DN, Drisse MNB, Nxele T, & Sly PD. E-waste: a global hazard. Annals of global health. 2014;80(4):286-95.
• 4. Directive EC. Directive 2012/19/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 4 July 2012 on waste electrical and electronic equipment, WEEE. Official Journal of the European Union L. 2012;197:38-71.
• 5. Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Control Regulation, T.R. Official Gazette, 28300, 22 May 2012. Retrieved from: https://www. resmigazete.gov.tr/eskiler/2012/05/2012 0522-5.htm
• 6. Grant K, Goldizen FC, Sly PD, Brune MN, Neira M, van den Berg M & Norman RE. Health consequences of exposure to e-waste: a systematic review. The lancet global health, 2013;1(6): e350-e361. doi: 10.1016/S2214-109X(13)70101-3
• 7. Forti V, Balde CP, Kuehr R& Bel G. The Global E-waste Monitor 2020: Quantities, flows and the circular economy potential.2020.
• 8. Akın B.&Kuru A. Electrical and Electronic Waste (E-waste) Damages, Management and Evaluation of Its Applications in Turkey. Istanbul Aydın University Journal. 2011; 3 (12):1-12. Retrieved from: https://dergipark.org.tr/ en/pub/iaud/issue/30057/324522
• 9. ZengX,HuoX,XuX,LiuD&WuW. E-waste lead exposure and children's health in China. Science of The Total Environment. 2020;734: 139286. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139286
• 10. Zeng X, Xu X, Boezen HM, & Huo X. Children with health impairments by heavy metals in an e-waste recycling area. Chemosphere. 2016;148:408-15. DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2015. 10.078
• 11. Sayman RÜ. Ministry of Environment and Urbanization, Regulation on Control of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment, Municipality Implementation Guide. 2016. Retrieved from: https://rec. org.tr/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/aeee_rehberi.pdf
• 12. Karataş O. Electronic wastes return and effects on human life. İzmir Kâtip Çelebi University Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences. Master's thesis. 2018; pg:34-8.
• 13. Tindall DB, Davies S& Mauboules C. Activism and conservation behavior in an environmental movement: The contradictory effects of gender. Society and Natural Resources. 2003;16: 909–32. DOI: 10.1080/716100620
• 14. Sherkat DE& Ellison CG. Structuring the religion-environment connection: Identifying religious influences on environmental concern and activism. Journal of the Scientific Study of Religion. 2007;46(1):71–85. DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-5906.2007.00341.x
• 15. Hunter LM, Hatch A& Johnson A. Crossnational gender variation in environmental behaviors. Social Science Quarterly. 2004;85(3):677–94. DOI: 10.1111/j.0038-4941.2004.00239.x
• 16. Scannell L, & Gifford R. The role of place attachment in receptivity to local and global climate change messages. Environment and Behavior. 2013;45:60-85.
• 17. Gifford R& Nilsson A. Personal and social factors that influence pro-enviromental concern and behaviour: A review. Internal journal of psychology. 2014:49(3):141-57.
• 18. Ülgen Ö. A survey aimed to determination of awareness of electronic waste in electronics industry. Master's thesis, Süleyman Demirel University, Department of Business Administration. Social Sciences Institute. 2017.
• 19.Çalış S& Ergül NR. Determination of Science Teacher Candidates’ Views on Electronic waste Pollution. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 2015;186:261-68. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro. 2015.04.146
• 20. Deniz PÖ, Aydın CY& Kiraz EDE. Electronic waste awareness among students of engineering department. Cukurova Medical Journal. 2019;44 (1):101-9. Retrieved from: https://doi.org/ 10.17826/cumj.440498
• 21. Şentürk İ. Measuring Public Awareness Level on Recycling of Electrical and Electronic Equipment Wastes: The Case of Sivas Province. OPUS International Journal of Society Studies. 2019;11(18):956-78. Retrieved from: http://dx.doi.org/10.26466/opus.548371
• 22. Hobikoğlu EH& Özdemir Z. Elektrikli ve Elektronik Atıkların Geri Dönüşümünde Tüketici Davranışları: İstanbul Örneği Consumer Behavior in the Recycling of Electrical and Electronic Waste: The Case of Istanbul. (2013).
• 23.Nath B,Kumari R,Gupta V,Vaswani ND, Lekhwani S. A community-based study on e-waste disposal in Srinagar, Uttarakhand: assessment of awareness and practices. International Journal of Community Medicine and Public Health. 2018;5:3429-34.
• 24. Çiftlik S, Handırı İ, Beyhan M, Akçil AU, Ilgar M& Volunteer MT. Evaluation of electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) in terms of management, economy and metal recovery potential. Solid Waste Management Symposium in Turkey (Türkay 2009), YTU. 2009;pg:15-17. Retrieved from: Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication /238775009
• 25. Robinson BH. E-waste: an assessment of global production and environmental impacts. Science of the total environment. 2009;408(2):183-91. DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2009.09.044.