Australia’s 3G shutdown: Recycle your obsolete devices now

By Emma Lucey 14 October 2024

The countdown is on to the last 3G networks closing down in Australia. Even though your old ‘backup’ phone may now be obsolete, it doesn’t mean it’s useless – recycling the phone will give it a second life.

Earlier this year in January, TPG Telecom and Vodaphone closed their 3G mobile network, with Telstra and Optus to follow suit from October 28. This may not be a problem for those with devices now using the 4G or 5G networks, but it could mean that any old phones gathering dust in your drawers really aren’t useful as backups anymore.

Luckily, it doesn’t mean they aren’t useful at all. Recycling your old mobile phone through Australia’s product stewardship scheme for mobiles, MobileMuster, can be beneficial to the environment as the materials that make up a phone can be utilised again instead of new materials being extracted from our planet.

Benefits of recycling

So, what can your mobile become after the materials are separated for recycling? Once your phone is collected, it undergoes a process of dismantling and material separation, allowing different components to be recycled into new products.

Here’s a closer look at some key materials inside your mobile:

• Plastic: The polycarbonate casing of your phone is a resilient, elastic plastic, originally developed for use in the aerospace industry. When recycled, this plastic can be shredded into pellets and repurposed into products like plastic park benches or parts for new tech. Given polycarbonate is a byproduct of crude oil processing, recycling it helps reduce our impact on the environment.

• Aluminium: This versatile metal, used to frame the phone, is one of the most recycled materials on earth and used in many different industries. Australia is one of the world’s largest producers of aluminium, which can be recycled infinitely. Once extracted from a recycled phone, it is melted and reformed into products like construction materials, car parts, or even drink cans. Recycling aluminium takes 95% less energy than producing it from raw materials.

• Glass: Your phone’s screen is made from a specially treated glass that combines silica (from sand) with aluminium and a tin coating to ensure durability. Once recycled, the glass can be melted down and used in new products—anything from new glass items to industrial materials.

• Copper: Copper connects the wires in your phone to conduct electricity, making it functional. Copper is one of the oldest metals in the world, mined for over 10,000 years. Much of the world’s copper is extracted from open-cut mines, with around a quarter mined in Chile. Like aluminium, copper can be recycled infinitely and reused in electronics, coins, musical instruments, construction materials, and sculptures.

Other resources used in mobile phones like lithium, cobalt, nickel, even in such small quantities, can be utilised again as they are infinitely recyclable.

As technology advances and networks evolve, the demand for new devices grows, putting a strain on our planet’s resources. By recycling your old phone, you help prevent the extraction of virgin materials, save energy, and reduce the amount of electronic waste that ends up in landfill. With more than 25 million unused phones in Australian households, now’s the time to make sure your old devices are put to good use again.

So, if you’ve been holding onto an old mobile just in case, consider giving it a second life through recycling. MobileMuster have thousands of drop-off locations around Australia – search for your nearest location via Recycling Near You here. The future of technology might be 4G and 5G, but the materials inside those old 3G devices are still valuable to the environment.