Latest News Mobile Phone Recycling Wairarapa cellphones can wing their way to good use with the launching of a Starship Childrens’ Hospital Mobile Phone Recycling Campaign. Masterton District Council’s Utility Services Manager James Li said people who freeposted their old cellphones to Starship would be turning their mobile ‘into essential equipment and services for Starship kids’. “All you have to do is pick up one of the  ParcelPost™ Returns Freepost envelopes from the entertainment counter at your local The Warehouse store, package the phone then pop in a local post box and you're done. It costs nothing. “ Promoters of the campaign are happy to receive any make and model of mobile phone regardless of condition. How it works: The phone is donated to the Starship Foundation via a ParcelPost™ Returns Freepost envelope. The envelopes are then packaged on pallets and despatched to the recycler for processing. SIM cards are removed and destroyed and the phones are graded . Phones in working order are refurbished and exported to developing countries , while those beyond repair are recycled through the correct environmental channels. The campaign helps support people in emerging economies that are in desperate need of this technology. Important Facts: You can use your old mobile phone to do something good for Starship kids. Ireland, which has a similar population size to New Zealand, has raised €2 million over the past two years through a similar campaign. The funds raised from Starship's Mobile Phone Appeal will help to pay for priority needs at Starship such as lifesaving equipment through to vital paediatric research. More than three million people have a mobile phone in New Zealand and they upgrade these on average once every 18 months. That means more than two million phones could become obsolete or no longer in use every year. Further details on: http://www.thewarehouse.co.nz/red/content/homepage/society-and-environment/mobilephone-recycling 11 May 2009