7.3.4—Waste impacts
- Syllabus
- First assessment 2026
- Objective
- 7.3.4
- Level
- HL
The Burden Can Move, Not Disappear
Waste impacts can occur far from where products were consumed because collection, export, recycling and disposal move materials and hazards between places.
When high-income societies export difficult or hazardous waste to lower-income societies with weaker protection or treatment capacity, local communities may bear pollution and health risks without receiving the original benefits—an environmental injustice.
Exported e-waste may be dismantled for valuable metals while workers and nearby soil or water receive toxic residues.
Trace origin, route, treatment, residues, beneficiaries and exposed groups; relocation is not impact removal.
A legal export or recycling label does not by itself prove safe treatment or fair distribution.