The residents of Hornsby Shire have been named New South Wales' and Australia's top mobile phone recyclers for the fourth year in a row as MobileMuster this week announced its top collectors.
The MobileMuster awards acknowledge those councils which have collected the most mobile phone components for recycling between 1 May 2021 and 30 April 2022.
Hornsby Shire residents deposited 670kgs of unwanted mobiles and accessories to be recycled by MobileMuster over the 12 months – 34 per cent more than the previous year!
At Council's Community Recycling Centre in Thornleigh, residents recycled the equivalent of 4,085 handsets and batteries, conserving 7.6 tonnes of mineral resources through the recycling process of these devices. The environmental benefits of recycling all these unwanted mobiles and batteries are equivalent to planting 39 trees with avoided co2 emissions equating to 1.5 tonnes.
Hornsby Shire Mayor Philip Ruddock said he was thrilled that Hornsby had once again taken out the recycling reward.
"Hornsby Shire is going from strength to strength, recycling more each year. To achieve the MobileMuster national title for a fourth time is a testament to our community's commitment to the environment and residents' willingness to take positive steps that benefit us all," Mayor Ruddock said.
"Thank you to everyone who has supported this valuable initiative and helped us retain our position as the nation's top mobile phone recycler. Keep up the good work Hornsby! Give your old handsets new life by dropping them off at the Thornleigh Community Recycling Centre."
The Community Recycling Centre is a free service that makes it easy for residents to safely dispose of problem waste that cannot go into household rubbish bins or kerbside collection. The large range of items accepted includes household car and motorcycle batteries, soft and hard plastics, electronic waste, flattened cardboard, polystyrene, gas bottles, mobile phones and more.
MobileMuster is the product stewardship program of the telecommunications industry. The program recovers over 95 per cent of the material from old phones and accessories through recycling, which are then used in manufacturing of new products, reducing the need for virgin materials such as aluminium, copper, gold, silver, cobalt and lithium.
Head of MobileMuster Spyro Kalos congratulated Hornsby Shire on its achievement and acknowledged the significant work local councils do in supporting the community to recycle.
"Our local council partners play a crucial role in educating the community on why and how to recycle, along with providing easily accessible drop off sites. With e-waste a growing waste stream, now more than ever our local council partners are an important part of the solution in collecting and recycling more mobile phones and their accessories," Spyro Kalos said.
"Congratulations to the people of Hornsby Shire for once again leading the charge in mobile phone recycling."
Member for Hornsby Matt Kean congratulated the people of Hornsby Shire for their recycling efforts.
"My fellow Hornsby Shire residents have proven time and again that they prioritise preserving our precious environment for future generations. Congratulations everyone on once again being the nation's top mobile phone recyclers."
To find your nearest MobileMuster collection point, visit mobilemuster.com.au
Image caption: Head of MobileMuster Spyro Kalos (second left) joined Nathan Chen (far right) and Peter Sole (far left) from the Community Recycling Centre Team and Deputy Mayor Nathan Tilbury (second left) to celebrate.
