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13 million Mobile Phones are Dumped a Year

Posted August. 30, 2002 21:59,   

한국어

Dumped approx. 13,000,000 mobile phones a year have brought about environment pollution and a squandering of resources.

A headquarter of Bagel Convention (International convention for a disposition and movement of noxious wastes between countries) of United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) called upon the domestic mobile manufacturers to take part in a collection of disused mobile phones, but they didn’t respond to its demand. Accordingly, it sent an official document to Korean government.

The mobile phone contains a noble metal such as a gold. Also, Printed Circuit Board Assembly which is the main part of the mobile phone, is the noxious substance of plumbum, mercury, arsenic and Beryllium. Battery (lithium ion battery) contains the organic solvents of Organic of Ethylene Carbonate. Accordingly, if these mobile phones are dumped in the ground, it can cause the soil and water pollution.

▽ Actual Conditions〓 As the population of mobile users has increased, the number of mobile phones has increased every year. According to the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy (MOCIE), Junked mobile phones jumped to 12,900,000 phones in 2001 from 6,640,000 phones in 1999 and 2,120,000 phones in 1997. Why the junked mobile phones have increased, is because the changing period of mobiles is faster than any other country of the world owing to Excessive Competition and various Subsidies payment of mobiles companies. Non-governmental Organizations estimates that the amount of foreign loss such as a royalty and parts imports due to junked mobile phones will reach KRW 2.58 billion a year. According to the results of the investigation on the actual condition of mobile phones for 504 Seoul citizens conducted by Green Consumer Network in July, 3 persons a family use the mobile and there are 1.2 disused mobiles. Because most of disused mobiles are kept in house, the recycle resources are locked up. If these disused mobiles are thrown as wastes, most of them are incinerated or reclaimed.

▽Turning away of Basel Convention’s Demand 〓 Klaus Töpfer the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Sakiko Guabara Yamamoto, the Executive Director of Basel Convention and Filipe Lorch(Minister of Defense of Switzerland) who is a chairman of general meeting of 5th Basel Convention countries sent the official document to the world top 10 mobile companies twice in June and July. They demanded the mobile manufacturers to collect the mobiles and take the recycle program because the mobile contains the noble metals to be recycled and noxious substance.

If the companies take in this program, the production companies must be responsible

for the collection of junked mobile phones.

Such as Nokia, Mitsubishi, Motorola, Panasonic, NEC, SIEMENS and Alcatel, foreign mobile manufacturers sent a positive answer, but only Samsung Electronics, the world top 3 company didn’t answer in spite of twice requests.

So, the international organization sent the official document requesting that Samsung Electronics aids in participating in the junked mobiles collection and recycle program of Basel Convention, to the Ministry of Environment through the Embassy of the republic of Korea to Geneva about the middle of August.

The Ministry of Environment has gone on the producer liability recycle policy prescribing that Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Association of Electronics Environment are required to collect and recycle the junked mobile phones voluntarily.

▽Backlash of Companies 〓 MOCIE-related companies have request to delay the introduction period of producer liability recycle policy for over 3 years for the purpose of weakening of corporate competitiveness.

Samsung Electronics said “Mobile phone needs the national support as the export strategy product. The junked mobile phones don’t pollute the environment less than other electronic appliances such as TV or Refrigerator owing to small wastes.



shchung@donga.com