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All About Mobile Wireless Cell Phone Recycling People seem to know everything about their cell phones - how to take pictures with them, how to email their friends with them, the list goes on and on. But when it comes to how cell phones are properly disposed and recycled, most people are in the dark. Here are ten facts about cell phone recycling to shed some light on the matter: • There are currently more than 200 million active cell phones in the United States alone. Perhaps even more astonishing, some estimates purport that there are in excess of 500 million "retired" cellular and mobile phones that are no longer in use but not yet disposed. That means that there is truly a need for a stronger effort to recycle these items.
• This problem will only increase in future years unless solid mobile phone recycling programs are introduced. Estimates and studies show that more and more people are beginning to use cell phones, meaning that the number of unused and obsolete phones will rise in turn. • Most used cell phones can be refurbished for future use. Barring major damage or excessive abuse, most cell phones can be restored to full functionality quickly and economically. This reduces the number of new phones that need to be produced from raw materials. Since mining these raw materials is in itself a significant source of environmental pollution, recycling cell phones and other wireless electronics helps protect the environment in two different ways.
• For those few phones that are so damaged that refurbishing is not a viable option, recycling presents a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly choice. The recycling process reuses most of the parts and keeps hazardous electronic waste from accumulating in landfills. • Cellular and wireless phone recycling prevents toxic elements and heavy metals from building up in landfills . Lead, mercury, arsenic, cadmium, beryllium, antimony and nickel can all be found in wireless phones and other electronic devices. It is important to treat these elements properly in order to ensure the health of our environment for generations to come.
• Another need for cell phone recycling is this: while electronic waste constitutes very little of the volume currently occupying landfill space, it is the direct source of more than 75% of the toxins infiltrating that same space. Cell phone recycling programs like Recycling for Charities help to dramatically reduce the toxicity of our municipal landfills. • The toxins in electronic waste like PDA's, digital cameras and cellular phones are not just dangerous to the area immediately around landfills - they are dangerous to everyone everywhere. Toxins such as lead and mercury can "leak" out of landfill space and into the ecosystem, directly harming wildlife and contaminating ground water. Wireless phone recycling programs and charities help prevent this problem from occurring.
• Of all the small electronic technology in the world today, cellular and wireless phones are among the fastest to change. Consequently, cell phone recycling efforts must be up to the challenge of preventing the masses of obsolete phones from accumulating in places they do not belong. • Cell phone recycling programs like Recycling for Charities benefit charities throughout the country. In fact, many of the refurbished phones can be distributed to people who need them in other countries or right here at home. • Now for the most important cell phone recycling fact: it's easy! Turning in your phone is convenient and hassle-free - Recycling for Charities does all the work.
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