Old cell phones can help worthy causes

Hoping you get a new cell phone this Christmas? You have company.

There are now more than 275 million cell phone subscribers in the United States.
That’s more than 80 percent of the entire U.S. population. What’s even
more eye opening is that we replace our phones on average every 12 to
18 months and it’s estimated that 130 million cell phones are retired
every year.

That’s more than a billion cell phones lying around
in drawers or, worse yet, going to the landfill over the past eight
years. Cell phones contain valuable and toxic metals that can be
recycled, and working phones can be collected and reused by others. You
can Do Your Part by giving your used phone a second life this holiday
season.

The best part? It’s easy. Many cell phone providers will take back your old phone and recycle it for you. AT&T, Verizon, Motorola and Sprint all collect used phones to support their charitable or environmental causes.

They are among more than 2,000 companies or organizations that belong to the Wireless Recycling Network of ReCellular,
the world’s leading recycler and reseller of cell phones. All makes and
models are collected and every phone is refurbished, reused or
responsibly recycled. In 2008, ReCellular collected more than 5 million cell phones in the U.S. and Canada.

If you are thinking about donating your phone to help a specific cause, the choices are many.

Cell Phones for Soldiers turns every donated cell
phone into a 60-minute prepaid calling card for U.S. troops overseas.
The program already has donated 500,000 calling cards for soldiers.

March of Dimes, Keep America Beautiful and Call to
Protect are other organizations that collect used cell phones to help
fund their missions. Many offer pre-paid shipping solutions to collect
your phone. You can find more information at www.Recellular.com/recycling.

If you are looking to raise money for schools, Motorola has just the program for you. Through the Race To Recycle Program, your school partners with Motorola to raise funds for your school. It’s easy to register and each school can earn up to $21,000 per calendar year, less shipping and box fees.

Charities aren’t the only beneficiaries from recycling used cell phones. In 2008, ReCellular reclaimed 210,000 pounds of copper, 954 pounds of silver and 96 pounds of gold. That’s roughly $2.5 million of precious metals that were recycled to produce new phones rather than mining for new materials.

Today, only 10 percent of cell phones in the U.S.
are recycled. Imagine the gifts we could give to our favorite charity
and our planet if we committed to recycling or reusing every cell phone
we no longer need. Do Your Part this year to keep them out of landfills
and put them into the hands of someone who will put your old phone to
good use.

Via McClatchy-Tribune News Service.