By MICHELLE HERBISON
GEELONG residents failed to dispose of nearly 130,000 old, unused mobile phones when moving house over the last five years, according to a recycling program.
MobileMuster recycling manager Rose Read said more than half of Geelong residents surveyed said they found old mobiles, chargers and batteries lying around the home last time they moved.
“Geelong residents love their technology but they seem very reluctant, or don’t know how easy it is, to recycle their unused mobiles safely and securely rather than moving them from house to house cluttering up their lives.”
In the survey 24 per cent City of Greater Geelong respondents said they would recycle old mobile phones, with 14 per cent planning to throw old electronics away.
Another 23 per cent believed carrying old electronics to a new home was easier than disposing of them but more than 51 per cent cited their main concerns about moving to include “moving with items that are not needed or used anymore” and “getting rid of unwanted items”.
Australians across the country moved 5.7 million mobile phones with them to new homes in the last five years.
“By weight at least 65 tonnes of plastics and 48 tonnes of copper in mobile phones nation-wide could be reused, not to mention the steel, precious metals and other elements found in mobiles and chargers that are fully recyclable,” Ms Read said.
MobileMuster drop-off points were located at Telstra, Optus, Vodafone and Virgin Mobile retail outlets, Officeworks and Battery World stores and postage-paid recycling satchels were available at Australia Post, Ms Read said.
