Why Recycle?

• In the US, cell phone use has surged from 340,000 subscribers in 1985 to over 235 million in 2007
  
• It is an estimate that more than 140 million cell phones are retired each year and over 500 million cell phones are currently stockpiled in the US home
  
• The average American cell phone user owns 2 or more cell phones
  
• According to a JD Power and Associates report the average replacement cycle for a typical handset is 17.6 months
  
• The cicuit boards in cell phones contain myriad toxins such as arsenic, antimony, beryllium, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, nickel, and zinc
  
• Many of these chemicals are Persistent Bioaccumulative Toxins (PBTs) and have the potential to be released into the air and groundwater when burned in incinerators or disposed of in landfills, thus creating unnecessary threats to human health and the environment
  
• The lithium-ion and nickel-metal hydride batteries contain heavy metals such as cobalt, zinc, and copper
  
• Over 70% of Americans do not know that they can recycle their old cell phone
  
• Less than 5% of obsolete cell phones are refurbished or recycled
  
• Surveys suggest that 90% of Americans would recycle their cell phone if there was a convenient drop-off location at a store near them