|
||||||||||||
|
Cell Phone Recycling
In January 2005, Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 2904 (Pavley) requiring cell phone sellers to take back and recycle old phones at no cost to consumers. Nearly 40,000 cell phones are thrown away every day in California. Two studies recently confirmed that discarded cell phones should be managed as a hazardous waste because of the heavy metals contained in the phone. In general, a wireless phone handset consists of 40% metals, 40% plastics, and 20% ceramics and other trace materials. Thanks to new designs, more and more material in a wireless phone handset is recyclable. In addition to cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) that operate on wireless networks, wireless computer cards, and accessories such as spare batteries, phone chargers, cables, headsets, earpieces, cases, clips, and cradles are collected.
Cell phones and their batteries are considered hazardous but they are easy to recycle. You can either: |