We are waiting for the green turn from the state, but we throw away a third of our phones in perfect condition!
According to the research of the National Media and Communications Authority (NMHH), 53 percent of used mobile phones are no more than two years old, and 85 percent are no older than five years old. In the case of 32 percent of them, the exchange could have been avoided because the mobile phone was working properly, but the user still got a new one, as a result of a discount you bought or just got bored of your previous, out-of-fashion piece. We should understand that the telephone is not a fashion item, its production involves a huge environmental burden.
Based on research carried out by NMHH last year, 94 percent of the population aged 14 or older in Hungary use a mobile phone.
"It would be important for consumers to take sustainability aspects into account when using and purchasing. This would primarily require long-lasting devices. But because technology is rapidly becoming obsolete, people often change devices,” they noted.
They added that the reason for the short life cycle of mobile phones is not only technological obsolescence. Only 26 percent of the replaced devices were lost, broken or irretrievably obsolete. 35 percent of them were broken or the battery needed to be replaced, but 32 percent had no problems and were still usable.
They pointed out that these phones could have been repaired with the right design, supply of spare parts, and service network, thus reducing the environmental burden associated with the production of the new product.
I also touched on the fact that reuse and the secondary market for tired devices can also reduce the need for production. However, perhaps due to the rapid obsolescence, only 15 percent of people are mobile with a device they bought or received used. The vast majority (82 percent) acquired their phone newly.
25 percent of the users gave or sold the replaced device, thereby helping reuse. This ratio seems to contradict the previously mentioned 15 percent of second-hand mobile phone users, but it can be assumed that a significant part of the donated devices are used by children, who were not covered by the research.
The majority, 56 percent, preferred to keep the old one when buying a new device. Only 10 percent handed it in as segregated waste for recycling, and 3 percent simply threw valuable but polluting waste into the garbage.
It is important to know that the NMHH Netre! In its device exchange program , outdated mobile phones that cannot connect to the 4G network can be replaced with a new one with state support, while devices handed in at dealers are recycled, reads the authority's announcement.
Source: MTI, Makronóm, Mandiner
Featured image: cultura.hu
