By Ibrahima yakubu a piman Hoffman
The Hidden Dangers of Using Plastic Waste as Fuel in Northern Nigeria’s Slums
In many developing countries, where clean energy sources like gas and electricity are often too expensive, plastic waste is becoming a widely used—yet dangerous—fuel alternative.
In northern Nigeria’s slums, research by African Climate Reporters (ACR) has revealed that many households are burning plastic waste to cook, heat their homes, and boil water. This practice has grown more common as traditional fuels like charcoal, firewood, and cooking gas become increasingly costly and scarce.
Studies show that burning plastic is extremely harmful to health, releasing toxic chemicals such as dioxins, furans, and heavy metals into the air. These pollutants contribute to serious respiratory conditions, including lung diseases. A similar study in Indonesia found high levels of dangerous toxins in soil and food samples, directly linked to plastic burning.
Women and children are particularly vulnerable to these health risks since they tend to spend more time at home, where plastic is burned. Furthermore, the toxic chemicals from burning plastic can spread to other areas, affecting entire neighborhoods.
Plastic waste is cheap and highly flammable, making it an easily accessible fuel source. As natural resources like wood become scarcer, more people in developing regions, such as Nigeria, are turning to this hazardous alternative. The burning of plastic releases microplastics, bisphenols, and phthalates—chemicals that interfere with neurodevelopment, endocrine, and reproductive systems. In addition, burning treated wood and plastic releases heavy metals and dangerous toxins like dioxins, benzo(a)pyrene (BAP), and polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which are all known carcinogens.
African Climate Reporters (ACR) is calling on all 54 African nations to take action to address the widespread burning of plastic in developing countries.
While burning plastic is undoubtedly harmful, it continues due to the lack of affordable alternatives. This practice not only harms human health but also damages the environment and contaminates the food being prepared.
Despite its growing prevalence, this issue has largely been ignored. Families in northern Nigeria’s impoverished communities continue to burn plastic, including plastic leather and bottles, because they cannot afford cleaner fuel options.
Our research seeks to assess the emissions produced from burning plastic waste in cooking and evaluate the levels of contamination in various cooking methods. By raising awareness of this problem, we hope to highlight the dangerous impact of this practice on health and the environment.
A resident of Kaduna State, Northwestern Nigeria, explained, “We burn a lot of plastics because we don’t know which ones are harmful.” This statement reflects a common desire for more knowledge and a willingness to reduce harm. “Plastic bottles and leather are all blowing in the air for free,” they added.
Our research indicates that the majority of those burning plastic for cooking are from low-income neighborhoods, unaware of the harmful effects of inhaling toxic fumes.
Burning plastic is not a choice people willingly make. Banning plastic burning without providing alternatives is unlikely to be effective. Instead, policies should tackle the root causes of the problem. Some potential solutions include:
Encouraging people to wash plastics before burning them to remove harmful chemical residues.
Promoting the use of cleaner cookstoves that vent harmful fumes outside.
Expanding basic urban services like waste management in underserved areas.
Providing economic support to help lift households out of poverty.
Only by implementing such comprehensive strategies can we address the problem and create sustainable solutions for these communities.
It is clear that burning plastic, such as bottles or leather, can cause cancer and potentially lead to the death of many people.
ACR’s research shows that burning plastic waste generates harmful pollutants such as microplastics, bisphenols, and phthalates—toxins that disrupt neurodevelopment, endocrine, and reproductive functions. Ibrahima Yakubu, the founder of ACR, points out that burning household plastic waste negatively impacts human health in many ways. With two billion people worldwide lacking solid waste collection services, incineration often becomes the primary means of waste disposal in areas without proper infrastructure.
Researchers are currently investigating how to effectively prevent people from burning plastic waste and studying the health effects of exposure to the contaminants in the smoke.
Ibrahima Yakubu, a science journalist, emphasizes that household air pollution from burning solid fuels is a major contributor to poor health and environmental damage, leading to various health issues, including cancer.
Despite existing laws and policies meant to discourage open plastic burning, these practices continue, especially in communities where waste management is informal and lacks proper governance. With a global focus on developing a plastics treaty, ethnographic research offers insights into the limits of policy interventions, particularly in places where waste management is informal, and plastic waste is increasingly exported from wealthier countries for disposal or recycling.
To combat this issue, African Climate Reporters’ team of scientists and climatologists has launched a continuous campaign using both online and offline platforms to educate millions about the importance of adopting renewable energy. They also call on governments to reduce the costs of new cooking stoves for rural and urban women, and lower the prices of cooking gas and kerosene to make these resources more accessible to poorer households. This could help reduce the demand for deforestation and the charcoal and timber industries.
As Ashworth points out, banning plastic burning may not work if people have no alternative means to cook and stay warm. This highlights the need for governments to implement laws that regulate companies and gradually phase out the use of plastic bottles and leather.
The federal government should also help recycling companies by providing reliable electricity to support their operations.
Proposed solutions to tackle plastic burning include:
Subsidizing cleaner fuels to make them affordable for poorer households.
Improving waste management to prevent plastic waste accumulation in slums.
Educating communities about the environmental hazards of burning plastic.
In conclusion, the effects of climate change on people in rural areas vary depending on factors such as gender, age, and wealth. Addressing the harm caused by open plastic burning will require a multifaceted approach, not only focusing on waste disposal but also on production. Reducing plastic manufacturing, using safer additives, and phasing out non-recyclable plastics are long-term goals that will take decades to achieve. However, in the short term, we can take steps to reduce the most toxic types of plastic and mitigate the harm they cause.
African Climate Reporters also recommends limiting the use of toxic plastics and packaging types through higher taxes and production caps. Local awareness campaigns can educate people about the dangers of ash from plastic burning, particularly when it is used as fertilizer.
Finally, the implementation of extended producer responsibility (EPR) schemes, where manufacturers are responsible for collecting, recycling, or safely disposing of post-consumer plastic waste, is also critical to addressing the problem.
We hope that our recommendations will inspire change and lead to stronger plastic control policies that are effective and practical in addressing this growing issue.
