Charities, Corporations Tackle Cell Phone Recycling

Lynn Schenkman

San Francisco -- As an increasing contributor to the U.S.’s electronic waste (e-waste) conundrum, cell phones are piling up in the nation’s landfills and releasing toxins into the environment. According to "Waste in the Wireless World: The Challenge of Cell Phones," discarded cell phones leak lead, cadmium and mercury into groundwater and the atmosphere. The report, which was published by New York-based INFORM, an environmental research organization, states that 128 million cell phone users in the U.S. routinely switch services and upgrade to new phones, tossing old phones in the trash. Several phone donation programs have sprung up recently, though, and old cell phones are being accepted at Radio Shack, The Body Shop and Sprint PCS stores. For details on cell phone recycling that targets charities, visit

www.donateaphone.com

.