Where does you old phone goes?

The average US citizen change their phone in less than a year

In the United States the average citizen change their phone in less than a year. When they replace it, most of them send it to a landfill or incinerator where toxic substances can get into the soil, water and air. Every year, 140,000,000 cell phones, that is every 4 second a mobile phone will be dumped into a landfill, where there will be 80,000 pounds of lead going into the earth and groundwater supply of surrounding communities. 

Dumping mobile phone into landfill is not sustainable, it will cause long term pollution risk to the environment. Mobile phones and accessories consist of high concentrations of toxic heavy metals or other metals including cadmium, lead, nickel, mercury, manganese, lithium, zinc, arsenic, antimony, beryllium, and copper. They may leach into the water courses or contaminate the soil. Metals build up in the soil and they can then enter the food chain and in sufficient concentrations may cause health problems.

What really makes me worry is the chemicals above will have a range negative health effects, including damage to the nervous system, reproductive and developmental problems, cancer and genetic impacts. The health effects of lead poisoning are well known. If too much lead is absorbed into the bloodstream, it will cause serious liver and kidney damage in adults and neurological damage in children. Nickel and mercury are toxic and are classed as hazardous substance. I wonder how many adult and children are sick because of the metal poisoning in the developing countries like some developing cities in China and in South-East Asia.

A polluted river flows past a workshop that is
used for recycling electronic waste in GuiyuTyrone Siu/Reuters

If you are attached to your cell phone as I do to mine, don't change it until your phone really stop working, even it is not working well just go to a local mobile store and fix it. The information shown here about the pollution of cell phones on the environment and the impacts on your health will probably make you uncomfortable, but you can help to minimise the impact and tell your friend about this.  And remember, when you really decided to give up on your old phone be sure to donate or recycle your old one! I will be thankful if you could do one more step before you chuck it in the bin. It is meaningless to chase the latest cell phone, as the main use of mobile phone are phone calls, messages and internet. Maybe let's ask ourselves a question: Do I WANT it or I really NEED it?

Reference:

"The Environmental Impact of Cell Phones." Techi Fresh Daily Technology News. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.techi.com/2011/01/the-environmental-impact-of-cell-phones/. 

"ARP : Mobile Phone Waste and The Environment." ARP : Mobile Phone Waste and The Environment. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.arp.net.au/envcha.php. 

"Guiyu Waste Dump: The Chinese Tip Where Your Old Mobile Phones and Computers Go to Die [Photo Report]." International Business Times RSS. 2015. Accessed April 15, 2016. http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/guiyu-waste-dump-chinese-tip-where-your-old-mobile-phones-computers-go-die-photo-report-1509187.