Americans are getting better at recycling, but we still trash things we shouldn’t.
Cell phones, car batteries, and toxic chemicals are good examples of things that end up in landfills when they should actually go to a recycling plant.
Why shouldn’t you throw your cell phone away? Cell phones contain arsenic, lead, mercury, cadmium and lots of other nasty chemicals we don’t want seeping into our lakes, rivers and streams.
There are nearly 200 million cell phone users in the US all of whom upgrade their old cell phone, on the average, every 18 months. This means that more than 11 million cell phones are retired every month in the US alone. As of this writing less than 5% of these phones are collected for reuse and recycling.
Some claim that because of the small size of the average cell phone it’s easy for a consumer to simply trash it. Maybe one person trashing a cell phone doesn’t seem like much but surveys suggest that each of the 200 million cell phone subscribers have 2.5 old cell phones shoved in a desk drawer or stored in a closet somewhere in their home or office.
Imagine if all those cell phones, 500 million in all, were discarded in household trash over the course of a year. Over 80,000 tons of additional waste would be generated. This is not common household waste that becomes fertilizer. It has the potential to pollute.
There are plenty of organizations that will take your old cell phones.
The Wireless Foundation and Cell For Cash are two good organizations to donate old cell phones to.
Many wireless retail stores will also take your used cell phones and make sure they are disposed of properly.
If you live in California, it will soon be illegal to dump your e-waste into your garbage can.
Old digital camera? Dead batteries? Frazzled cell phone? Obsolete computer?
What was once just household clutter — the common refuse of modern Silicon Valley life — soon will be illegal to toss into your trash can.
Starting Feb. 9, new state hazardous waste rules will ban California residents from throwing most consumer electronics, batteries or mercury-containing products in the garbage.
The idea behind the rules is to reduce the lead, mercury, copper and other metals that can leach out when electronic devices are crushed in landfills — polluting groundwater, streams and wildlife.
Also included on the list are printers, VCRs, microwave ovens, fluorescent lighting, glass thermometers and old thermostats.
Residents with any of these types of waste will be required to dispose of them at a household hazardous waste collection center, where they can be recycled. Every Bay Area county runs at least one such center, often near landfills.
But don’t worry about the garbage police. Compliance will be voluntary.
Read the full article here
(Image from Popsci.com)
Comments (4)
Wow. This is the single best piece I’ve read on why it’s important to recycle. Amazing information. You’re good!! Thanks for the info.
Good article.I would also like to add that saving ourselves does not mean putting others into danger.Dumping old computers,phones and other E-wastes into developing countries should be a no-no for any country.
Thanks to those people who care for our mother earth. I hope not only cell phones will be recycled but other electronics too.
Thanks for the comment Save Cell.
While the politics of global warming is currently fierce fodder in many parts of the world, it’s great that people like you remind us that simple respect for the planet should be a basic responsibility.
Many people don’t realize that electronic devices contain toxic elements that can harm lanfills, possibly ground water and if not disposed of properly can do genuine damage.
Thank you very much for taking the time to share.
Keep in mind that, for many people, once they become aware of an issue…..they then become involved. So don’t stop spreading the word. Education takes time, and your comments are appreciated.
Scot
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