There's Hazards and $$$ in Garbage

-
Check out: CollectiveGood Inc., a cellphone recycling and refurbishment organization that works with Staples Inc. to take care of used phones.

Do cellphones need to be recycled? Why? Here's are some facts to consider:

> An astounding 100 million cellphones will be taken out of service in the U.S. this year, says Yankee Group Inc., a technology research firm in Boston. The majority, an estimated 60% to 70%, will be saved in closets or desk drawers, say environmental and industry groups. Only about five million will be refurbished or recycled, these groups say. That means at least 25 million phones will end up tossed in the trash in the U.S. alone.

> Cell phones contain contain several toxic materials -- lead, cadmium, mercury and materials that can degrade into arsenic contain several toxic materials -- lead, cadmium, mercury and materials that can degrade into arsenic

> Lifecycle on a cellphone has dropped to 1.5 to 2 years; that is, most of us get a new phone every other year, throwing away the old one.

> A study funded by the Environmental Protection Agency earlier this year found that the lead levels in cellphones were above a threshold that would cause waste to be classified as hazardous in many casesA study funded by the Environmental Protection Agency earlier this year found that the lead levels in cellphones were above a threshold that would cause waste to be classified as hazardous in many cases

What can you do? Contact eletronics manufacturers to see if you can work with them to pick-up old products and return them to the company for proper disposal.

Why would the company want to pay you for that? In a word: liability