By Karen Walters
Almost everyone has a cell phone – and sometimes an older, unused model, too. Students at Pontiac Township High School are trying to make a difference for the environment by collecting those old phones and recycling them.
This is the second year for the students in ecology classes to organize and run the recycling program. Last year, more than 300 phones were collected.
The phones are given to Motorola, a leading maker of cell phones and related technology, for recycling or refurbishing.
According to the company, more than 1.7 billion people use cell phones as their primary means of communications. About 23 new cell phones are manufactured every second.
More than 100 phones were collected during the first week of the collection program, said teacher Paul Ritter.
"We have one of the largest landfills here in Pontiac, and we need to do everything we can to recycle," he said. "Much of the parts in cell phones can be recycled. If put in landfills, they can contaminate ground water."
The students chose the cell phone recycling project over other community service projects because of the prevalence of cell phones.
Ritter said there are more than 500 million unused cell phones in the United States, sitting in people's drawers, closets and other places.
The number continues to grow, as more than 100 million phones are turned off or unused each year, according to Motorola.
Ritter said cell phones contain hazardous chemicals, like lead and arsenic, which can pollute the air and ground water.
Motorola will melt the old or damaged phones, recover reusable materials and burn off plastics for fuel. None of the materials will end up in landfills.
Phones to be recycled should have all their information erased to protect the former owner. Instructions on erasing data can be found at www.wirelessrecycling.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment