If you’re ready to upgrade your old cell phone for that new model you’ve been eying, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the cell phone industry want you to recycle or donate your used cell phone. If Americans recycled the 100 million cell phones that are discarded annually, the EPA estimates the nation would save enough energy to power more than 18,500 homes for a year. In 2007, Americans recycled only 10 percent of their unwanted cell phones. Recycling or reusing cell phones helps the environment by saving energy and keeping reusable materials out of landfills. Cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) contain a variety of precious metals, copper, and plastics. Recycling or reusing them not only conserves these materials, it also prevents air and water pollution and reduces greenhouse gas emissions. More than 500 million unwanted cell phones are either awaiting disposal in the home, or seeping hazardous lead, mercury, cadmium, brominated flame retardants, and arsenic into the environment. And with new features available every year, a cell phone’s average life is now less than 18 months, adding more than 125 million cell phones (and their batteries) to our landfills each year — or 2 million toxic mobile phones dumped each week. Because the United States has yet to establish federal regulations requiring mobile phone recycling, donating or recycling cell phones is at less than 1 percent. The good news is that mobile phone manufacturers have recognized the need for cell phone recycling, stepping up their efforts to stop this enormous threat to the environment. All five national mobile phone carriers have instigated a mobile phone recycling take-back plan, accepting unwanted cell phones at any of their retail locations nationwide.
Another option is to donate your used cell phones or PDAs to Cell Phones for Life which provides free emergency cell phones for the elderly, disabled, and victims of domestic violence. Donated cell phones can help raise money for charities that sell the used cell phones at a discount. Many existing recycling programs already donate cell phones that are in good working order to worthy charities, which reuse the cell phones in their own organizations, sell the phones for fundraising, or distribute the cell phones free to low-income people. Even without a wireless service plan, donated cell phones are reusable, because any working mobile phone can dial a 911 call center (an FCC requirement). As a result, recycled cell phones can be used as emergency lifelines for senior citizens and victims of domestic violence. You can also donate your used cell phone to Cell Phones for Soldiers which uses the donated cell phones to provide an hour of talk time to soldiers abroad. Cell Phones for Soldiers hopes to turn old cell phones into more than 12 million minutes of prepaid calling cards for U.S. troops stationed overseas in 2008. To do so, Cell Phones for Soldiers expects to collect 50,000 cell phones each month through a network of more than 3,000 collection sites across the country.
Lynne
Hi Lynne,
We have mobile phone recycling programs here in the UK too. I think they are well worth using.
Enjoy the journey.
Mandy
Howdy there,just found your Post when i google something and wonder what hosting do you use for your web site,the speed is more faster than my blog, i really want to know it.will back to check it out,thanks!
Hi Clyde,
It is just a word press blog format with some key plug-ins. I you’d like to discuss them email me at admin@jaylynne.com and I’ll tell you how I have it set up. I also build themes for word press if your interested.
Jay
i love camera cellphones so much, i wish they could have make a 10 Megapixel camera cellphone:.”