CTIA-The Wireless Association Dials Into Green Movement

Ever wonder what to do with that shoebox full of old cellphones and accessories you have stuffed in a closet?

If you’ve ever thought about recycling the devices, you might get a little help from CTIA-The Wireless Association, which announced  (opens in a new tab) a new Green Working Group  (opens in a new tab) (GWG) this week to promote its sustainability efforts.

“It’s vital that wireless users are actively engaged by returning their old devices and accessories,” CTIA said in a statement  (opens in a new tab). “By working together, we can protect and preserve our environment for future generations.”

To boost cellphone recycling, the GWG has established a three-part plan, which includes developing and educating consumers on take-back programs for phones and accessories; making use of third-party recyclers; and developing a universal measuring system for collection rates while setting a goal to increase the collection of devices and accessories by 20 percent by 2015.

“It may seem like a small step,” said Jamie Hastings, vice president of external and state affairs at CTIA, “but [it is] one that makes a significant impact as the EPA estimates that recycling 1 million cellphones would power more than 185 U.S. households with electricity for a year.”

CTIA’s new working group also identified several steps to help reduce the amount of environmental waste from wireless device and accessory packaging:

• Eliminating plastic inserts and trays from postpaid wireless device packaging by the end of 2013
• Labeling all U.S. postpaid wireless packaging with internationally recognized symbols to facilitate recycling by December 31, 2013
• Using less than 10 percent volatile organic compounds in postpaid packaging elements, including labels, by the end of 2013
• Using water-based adhesives or self-sealing tab-locking boxes by June 2014
• Printing all postpaid packaging material, including user guides, with non-petroleum-based inks by the end of 2014

Apple, AT&T, Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon are just some of the members of the working group, which is a component of the association’s larger “Go Wireless Go Green”  (opens in a new tab) initiative.

(Photo by stockbroker / 123RF)