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How do you reduce the impact of your mobile ?

We all have them, and they are the one thing along with our keys that we take with us when we leave the house each day. Did you know that a significant amount of energy goes into manufacturing your mobile? In fact, it is estimated that around 80% of the carbon emissions linked to mobile phones are generated in the manufacturing stage. Creating a phone requires materials that need to be mined and processed which is a carbon intensive process. Therefore, increasing your mobile phone’s life cycle is a sustainable choice and better for the planet.

With many of us storing our old mobiles at home, thinking about repairing, reusing or recycling them can help improve your personal carbon footprint. Research shows that Australians are holding onto their current mobile for longer with the average mobile phone replacement cycle now having reached 30 months. The ability to upgrade software without the need in changing the device has helped grow the average replacement cycle by consumers.

We have some great ideas on how to reduce the impact of your unused mobile phone and improve your environmental footprint. If you have an old mobile phone at home going to waste in storage, think about reusing or recycling it.

Repair. Repairing a phone can extend its life and reduce the environmental impact of the device. It plays an integral role in the circular economy by keeping products and materials in use for longer. Longer use of your phone means fewer resources are extracted from the earth, less energy is required to manufacture a new product and the saving of carbon emissions.

Reuse. Extending the life of a product is an important part of the circular economy and will reduce their environmental impact. Handset manufacturers and your network provider can help extend the life of your phone through trade-in programs. Mobile phones have a greater chance of being reused if they are sold or given away shortly after consumers have upgraded rather than storing them at home. It is in this period that devices have the greatest reuse value.

Recycle: Recycling is the final stage of the mobile phone life cycle and includes the dismantling and processing of components so the materials can be recovered to be used again. Recycling a mobile phone has benefits across several environmental indicators including global warming, resource depletion, fossil fuels and pollution. Through recycling MobileMuster transforms the components from mobile phone waste into valuable materials for reuse. It means that fewer raw materials need to be extracted and processed to make new products.

Encouraging more Australians to responsibly reuse and recycle their mobile phone will result in greater environmental benefits and positive climate change impacts. So, what are you going to do with your old mobile?