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Discarded Mobile Phones Create an Avalanche of Toxic E-Waste 7-10-08
by: David Gutierrez
Thousands of tons of electronic waste hit landfills each year as users
upgrade to new mobile phones and discard the old ones.
According to British newspaper The Independent, there are already 11,000 tons of
unused cellular phones in the United Kingdom that have not yet been disposed of.
Most of these phones will eventually be discarded, along with old laptops,
portable music players and video game consoles. These electronic products are
made with highly toxic metals and other chemicals that leach into the earth when
discarded.
An estimated 1 billion mobile phone handsets are sold each year, with 1 million
per day coming from Nokia alone. Most cellular phone service providers lure new
customers by promising a free new handset for those who sign up. While many
companies offer to recycle used mobile phones for consumers, the vast majority
of such phones are still thrown away.
Johan Thomsen, a manager at mobile phone operator Green Mobile (UK Only), called
the scale of the problem "frightening."
"The problem today is that people upgrade their mobile phones every year and
only a small percentage of these phones are disposed of safely," he said.
According to Thomsen, about 100 million people upgrade to new phones each year
in Europe alone, even though the average handset has a life of 5 years.
To encourage phone reuse, Green Mobile (UK Only) asks new customers to keep
using their old handset and rewards them with a lower rate than can be offered
by companies that subsidize new phones each year.
The prevalence of recycled phones is expected to increase as the problem of
e-waste enters the public consciousness and stricter regulations force more
companies to tackle the problem. ABI Research estimates that these factors, in
addition to shorter handset replacement cycles and a greater demand for cheaper
phones will cause the recycled handset market to be worth $3 billion by 2012,
with recycled phone shipments numbering above 100 million.
What Are the Solutions?
By Enviroleader
Nokia has unveiled ReMade, a
revolutionary mobile phone made of 100% recycled materials.
The idea behind the “remade”¯ concept was to see if it was possible to create a
device made from nothing new. It has been designed using recycled materials that
avoid the need for natural resources, reduce landfill, and allow for more energy
efficient production.
It is made out of metals from upcycled aluminum cans, plastics from drink
bottles form the chassis, and its rubber key mats are provided by old car tyres.
Inside the phone are new more environmentally friendly technologies such as
printed electronics, and the graphics used on the display save energy without
compromising on style.
Remade is a concept that explores potential new ideas for the future, and is
part of Nokia’s ongoing work looking at how it can help people make more
sustainable choices. It is designed to help inspire and stimulate discussion on
how mobile devices might be made in the future.
Nokia has been leading the way in its environmental endeavors, where 65-80% of
its phones can be recycled and use the latest technology to promote energy
efficiency.
The 3110 Evolve’s biocover is made with 50% renewable material, and the packaging has been reduced by 60% for the handset. Along the a charger that uses 94% less energy that Energy Star compliance requires.
They are also active in getting consumers to unplug their devices, which is the reason your Nokia beeps to alert you when it’s fully charged. Nokia also advocates cell phone recycling programs to keep cell phones (and their toxic materials) out of landfills and in use as refurbished devices.
Motorola
Motorola’s is placing its focus on getting old devices off the street and back
into use to keep them out of landfills through school and recycling campaigns,
such as the Motorola’s
Trade Up
program, whose tagline is: Go Green and Get Some Green.
Last year, the company announced a patent on a solar-powered technology that would allow the batteries to recharge through crystals in the LCD screen. While not a new idea, its another step forward in green thinking.
LG
Like competitors Nokia and Motorola, LG is working to replace harmful
ingredients, like cadmium, lead or nickel, which serves as skin irritant
according to authority Eric Zeman of
PhoneScoop, one of my favorite blogs for the mobile savvy. Their devices
also beep to alert so that users can avoid phantom drain from the outlets (this
also helps save the battery life span.)