Cell Phones in Landfills:
The Environmental Damage

Upward of one hundred million cell phones are replaced each year. Some of those end up in landfills because their owners aren't aware that electronics contain metals and other materials that can be hazardous to the environment if not disposed of properly.

Cell phone circuitry and displays can contain toxic compounds like arsenic, beryllium, cadmium, copper, and lead. The plastic shells of the cell phones have also been treated with brominated flame retardants.

In addition to the toxic compounds, there are also nontoxic materials contained in electronics. These include valuable resources such as precious metals, engineered plastics, glass, and other materials -- all of which require energy to manufacture. The energy required to produce these materials from scratch generate additional pollution, when existing materials end up in a landfill.

Because manufacturers use many different types of plastic in electronic equipment, it is the most challenging to recycle. These plastics often include contaminants such as metal screws and inserts, coatings and paints, foams, and labels. Currently, plastics from electronic equipment are both difficult and costly to sort. Also, plastics can be treated with brominated flame retardants, making them harder to recycle and possibly dangerous to those exposed to them.

Environmental Threats

Cadmium is persistent, bioaccumulative, and toxic. It is found in chip resistors, infrared detectors, and semiconductors.

Lead can accumulate in the environment and have a detrimental effect on plants, animals, and humans. In humans, it causes damage to the central and peripheral nervous systems, blood systems, and kidneys. Lead is contained in glass panels in computer monitors and in lead soldering of printed circuit boards. Consumer electronics may be responsible for 40% of this metal found in landfills.

Mercury is found on printed circuit boards), discharge lamps, and batteries. It is also used in data transmission equipment, telecommunications, and mobile phones. When mercury make sits way into waterways, it is transformed into methylated mercury in the sediments and eventually ends up in food where it can cause brain damage.

Brominated Flame Retardants are used on printed circuit boards, components such as plastic covers and cables. Flame retardant Polybrominated Biphenyls may increase cancer risk to the of the digestive and lymph systems. Once released into the environment through landfill leachate and incineration, they are concentrated in the food chain.