Why Recycle My Cell Phone?
The potential human health and environmental impacts of cell phone waste is grim.
Cell phones are potentially hazardous waste because they contain lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic. If thrown in the trash and sent to incinerators or landfills, environmental contamination can occur from combustion and leaching into soil and groundwater.
Sadly, less than 2% of old cell phones are being recycled today — we are calling on the public to help raise the profile of this important issue!
Some alarming facts about cell phones you might not know:
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Photo: Chris JordanThe EPA estimates cell phones will be thrown away at a rate of 130 million a year by 2005 that equals 65,000 tons of waste containing toxic metals!
- There are more than 500 million used cell phones in the U.S. sitting in people’s drawers or in our landfills.
Learn more about how the Recycle My Cell Phone campaign takes care of your phone:
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