Management of polychlorinated biphenyls stockpiles and contaminated sites in Africa: A review of 34 countries

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are industrial chemicals that are designated as persistent organic pollutants. They were used for the production of multifarious products but their manufacture, and uses were banned under the Stockholm convention which took effect in 2004. The parties to the convention had prepared national implementation plans (NIPs) detailing management measures for persistent organic pollutants including PCBs. In the current review, the NIPs of 34 African countries were reviewed to assess the size of PCBs stockpiles, their storage conditions, and the management of PCBs contaminated sites. The results showed that each of the African countries examined, except Egypt, has stored PCBs stockpiles in open fields. There are several PCBs contaminated sites scattered across African countries with Malawi having the largest number of contaminated sites, 211 as of 2005. Many of these sites are not well managed and there are only few monitoring activities of the levels of PCBs. Thus, strict implementation of the Stockholm Convention and the NIPs to reduce the PCBs stockpiles size, and appropriate management of PCBs are required in Africa.