Cell Phones

Reduce | Reuse | Recycle | Facilities

How do I go green?

Reduce

Resist the urge to upgrade to the latest model and make do with what you have for another season. When selecting a new phone, do some research and choose a robust model that will withstand a few years of use. Choose a green model. Charge your phone only when the battery is low and turn it off when not in use.

Reuse

Give your old phone to a friend or family member, offer it online through craigslist or freecycle or donate it to a charitable organisation. Keep it as a back up in case of emergency.

Recycle

The Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA) coordinates a nationwide mobile phone recycling and refurbishment program. Most cell phone retailers will accept your old phone and charger back for recycling. If you don't want to take it into a store, a prepaid shipping label is available through recyclemycell.ca recyclemycell.ca so that you can parcel up your unwanted phone and drop it in the mail.

Call2Recycle Call2Recycle is a product stewardship program for cell phones and batteries.  Go to www.call2recycle.org for a complete list of free drop off locations.
In the Capital Region, Rogers, Fido, Connect, Sound Advice, Tom Harris Cellular and Project Redial with Canadian Diabetes are some of the facilities that accept used cell phones, batteries and chargers for recycling.
Be sure to wipe out any personal information before recycling your cell phones.  Asset Investment Recovery offers a secure electronic media destruction service.

Not all of the facilities listed below are part of the Product Stewardship program.  If they are not they may charge a recycling fee.