Mobile phones
If we unplugged chargers for devices such as mobile phones and MP3 players when not in use, the UK could save enough electricity each year to power 115,000 homes.
Chargers are not huge energy consumers in their own right, but across the UK those left plugged in unnecessarily waste over £60m and are responsible for a quarter of a million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year.
If a charger feels warm when it is plugged in without being attached to a device it is still using energy, which is costing you money and producing carbon emissions.
Recycle your old mobile phone
Millions of people update their mobile phone every year in the UK. This costs extra money, uses extra energy in manufacture and transport and often the replaced phone still works. Ideally we should use our mobile phones for as long as possible to cut down on these financial and environmental costs. However, if you do need to keep up to date with the latest gadgets, take your old phone to a recycling scheme.
There are lots of ways to recycle your mobile phone. Many schemes are now related to charities, which use the old phones to generate funds for their causes. The old phones don’t even need to be working as they can still be used for spare parts.
You could even make some money from your old mobile by selling it on ebay orone of the many phone recycling schemes.
Most schemes will provide you with a freepost address to send your phone to and maybe even a jiffy bag so there’s no cost and very little hassle involved in making sure your old mobiles go to a better home than the landfill, making you feel a lot better and helping to de-clutter your home.
Save energy, save money & help save the planet
