In today's world it seems that everything is designed to be disposable. A new environmental initiative would like to see mobile phones taken off of the list of things that are thrown into the trash once they see the end of their use. The Fonebak program is the world's first mobile phone recycling scheme to be backed by all of the major European cellular phone carriers.
"Over 15 million consumers upgrade their phones with accessories such as batteries and chargers each year, which equates to some 1500 tonnes of potentially hazardous landfill every year. Fonebak has been launched to address this problem and provides a safe and environmentally responsible way for businesses to manage the return of handsets and accessories," said Gordon Shields, CEO of Shields Environmental, operators of the scheme.
The program works by collecting unwanted mobile phones. These phones may be reused or recycled. Reusing the phones is preferred over recyclying as this has the smallest environmental impact.