Thar’s Gold In Them Old Cell Phones!

While the Digital Age has done some environmental good – reduced the number of trees cut down for paper, and provided opportunities for “telecommuting,” taking cars off the roads – it has also created new environmental threats.

Digital equipment such as computers and cell phones become obsolete very quickly, and there are many toxic substances used in their manufacture that are not healthy for children and other living things. Electronic waste has become a big problem, but some industries are attempting to come up with solutions.

This year in the U.K., a Cheshire-based company called “Envirofone.com” has paid out more than £250,000 (approx. $600,000 USD) to people who bring in old mobile phones for recycling. People can either receive a cash payment or credit toward their subscription fee. Envirophone reconditions the handsets and sends them to countries where new hardware is not terribly affordable.

Recyclers can also designate their favorite charity for a donation. In addition to the cash paid out to individuals, Envirophone has donated £35,000 (about $80,000 USD) to charity. About  15 million old cell phones are upgraded each year in Great Britain, but fewer than three million are recycled or reused.

“We launched envirofone.com to target the general public and get them into the recycling habit,” Pete Petrondas, CEO of Envirophone said. “Unlike traditional schemes, we recognized that we needed to encourage the general public to recycle so we decided to offer them either cash or credit.”

Via The Register

While the Digital Age has done some environmental good – reduced the number of trees cut down for paper, and provided opportunities for “telecommuting,” taking cars off the roads – it has also created new environmental threats.

Digital equipment such as computers and cell phones become obsolete very quickly, and there are many toxic substances used in their manufacture that are not healthy for children and other living things. Electronic waste has become a big problem, but some industries are attempting to come up with solutions.

This year in the U.K., a Cheshire-based company called “Envirofone.com” has paid out more than £250,000 (approx. $600,000 USD) to people who bring in old mobile phones for recycling. People can either receive a cash payment or credit toward their subscription fee. Envirophone reconditions the handsets and sends them to countries where new hardware is not terribly affordable.

Recyclers can also designate their favorite charity for a donation. In addition to the cash paid out to individuals, Envirophone has donated £35,000 (about $80,000 USD) to charity. About  15 million old cell phones are upgraded each year in Great Britain, but fewer than three million are recycled or reused.

“We launched envirofone.com to target the general public and get them into the recycling habit,” Pete Petrondas, CEO of Envirophone said. “Unlike traditional schemes, we recognized that we needed to encourage the general public to recycle so we decided to offer them either cash or credit.”

Via The Register