The importance of mobile phone recycling in Malyasia is being recognised, although according to Nokia’s South-East Asia and Pacific sustainability manager, Malaysians still need to catch up with more developed countries like South Korea and Japan.
The deputy managing director of a leading e-waste recycler recognises that money can be made from the precious materials in printed circuit boards (PCBs) in old phones. Materials such as silver, copper, palladium, platinum and even gold are contained in PCBs.
John Ashok says: “it takes between 50,000 and 60,000 mobile phones or about three tonnes of mobile phone PCBs to make 1kg of 99.99% pure gold, which are sold to industrial buyers for reuse,”
According to Mr Ashok, mobile phones account for only a small percentage of the old electronics that are processed at their factory. He says the reason for this is because people expect to get something in return because they have paid out large amounts of money for their mobile phones initially. He feels it is important for the general public to understand that it costs money to dispose of waste responsibly.
“Income generated from the precious metals extracted allows us to dispose of the electronic waste in a safe manner, which means a cleaner environment for everyone,” he said.