A report released by Sony Ericsson has revealed that 71 percent of Australians have never recycled or properly disposed of their old mobile phones. This is despite the fact that 69 percent of the people surveyed consider themselves green-minded.
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According to the Sony Ericsson GreenHeart Report, 35 percent said that they haven’t recycled their mobile phones because they weren’t sure where and how to do it. Another 32 percent stated that they wanted to hang onto an old mobile phone ‘just in case,’ while 1 in 3 Australians admit that they leave their phone charger on even when their phone isn’t plugged into it.
However, 33 percent of Australians say they have heard of MobileMuster, the phone industry’s recycling initiative which collected more than 122 tonnes of mobile phones in 2008-2009.
With regards to buying green/environmentally friendly products, 60 percent of Australians feel that green products are more expensive, 1 in 4 said they’re unsure if the product would work as well as a non-green alternative, and more than 1 in 4 also said the economic downturn has affected how many green products they’ve bought.
Sony Ericsson’s Managing Director – Market Unit Oceania, Steve Wilson said that Australians should start taking small steps to reduce their carbon footprint.
“People can build on the desire to be green citizens by focusing on the little things they can do to reduce their carbon footprint, particularly with their mobile phones, such as recycling old handsets, turning off their charger when not in use and buying eco friendly alternatives,” says Wilson.
The report has also revealed that:
- Men are guiltier of leaving their phone charger on at all times – 41% of men said they did, compared to 31% of women
- 20-24 year olds are the worst when it comes to leaving their phone charger on at all times – 46% said they did, much higher than the average of 36%. 45-49 year olds, on the other hand were best, with only 24% saying they did
- Victoria is the greenest state – scoring the highest percentage for rating themselves green minded (73%) and also for saying they’d buy a green product (43%) out of all the states, and
- NSW residents know the least about MobileMuster, with only 38% of respondents saying they knew what it is. WA was the most clued in state, with 51% saying they know about it
