Keep your cell phone from becoming an environmental hazard.

Don't Throw Away a Good Opportunity
Having that cell phone is handy for ordering a pizza, checking in with your best friends, or catching a ride home. But there's more to owning a phone than this.

Cell phones and their batteries contain toxic chemicals that have been linked to cancer and diseases in people and wildlife. And by 2005, up to 130 million cell phones could be thrown away each year in the United States. These phones end up in landfills or incinerators, where the toxic chemicals can escape into the air, soil, and water.

Make the Call
You don't have to give up your cell phone or pledge never to have one. As one of the 128 million subscribers in the United States, you can help make a difference by:

	Keeping your phone for as long as you can. The average phone gets thrown out after just 18 months as people upgrade or just switch colors.
	Helping a good cause rather than pitching your phone. A number of charities collect old phones, fix them if they're broken, and put them to good use in other ways.
	Recycling the battery properly if you're replacing it. Check with the Rechargeable Battery Recycling Corporation by visiting www.rbrc.org or calling 1-800-8-BATTERY to find out where to drop off worn-out batteries.
	Encouraging cell phone companies to make more environmentally friendly phones. Write a letter, send an email, make a phone call—whatever it takes to make sure you're heard.
	Letting other people know about cell phone problems so they can help too.

The best thing you can do is keep your cell phone as long as possible. No matter when you buy it, companies will keep adding new features. It's impossible to keep up. Choose a phone that will do what you need it to do and stick with it as long as you can.