May 27, 2022 marked the launch of the collection drive for used and end-of-life mobile phones and the mascots under the campaign entitled HELLO-Helping Electronics Live Longer! Our mascots Cellma and Cellwyn will be the faces of the advertising and awareness-raising campaign, used to encourage citizens of Trinidad and Tobago to make a change and recycle their old mobile phones.
The project titled “Demonstration of the Environmentally Sound Management of Used and End-of-Life Mobile Phones in Trinidad and Tobago”, funded by the Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions under the Follow-up Partnership to the Partnership on Action for Computing Equipment, was developed by the BCRC-Caribbean and is endorsed by the Ministry of Planning and Development. Activity 2 under the project involves a national collection drive for used and end-of-life mobile phones. The phones collected will be sent to an internationally certified waste management company, Piranha International Limited, where they will demonstrate the environmentally sound management of used mobile phones in accordance with the Mobile Phone Partnership Initiative (MPPI) “Guidance on the ESM of Used Mobile Phones” and classification of used mobile phones as waste or non-waste in accordance with the Basel Convention Technical Guidelines on Electronic Waste. The aim of the project is to ensure that e-waste is disposed of in an environmentally sound manner, through understanding the current knowledge, attitudes and practices of persons, and improving public awareness through the dissemination of information.
We intend for the collection drive to act as a catalyst for a positive change in the way we dispose of e-waste. Right now, you can drop off your waste mobile phone at the BCRC-Caribbean Office located at #8 Alexandra Street, Port of Spain. From Monday 13th June 2022, collection bins will be installed across Trinidad and Tobago for your ease of access at the following locations:
- BCRC-Caribbean, St. Clair, Port of Spain
- Bmobile The Falls at Westmall, Westmoorings
- Bmobile Trincity Mall, Trinicity
- Digicel Eastern Main Road, Sangre Grande
- Bmobile Centre City Mall, Chaguanas
- Digicel C3 Centre, San Fernando
- Environmental Management Authority (EMA) San Fernando
- Digicel Penal
- Digicel Excellent City Centre, Port of Spain**
- Bmobile Scarborough**
** Please note Digicel POS and Bmobile Scarborough would be installed mid-July.
In collaboration with project partners that form the National Working Group (NWG) such as the Ministry of Planning and Development (MPD), Environmental Management Authority (EMA), Trinidad and Tobago Solid Waste Management Company Limited (SWMCOL), Tobago House of Assembly (THA), Trinidad and Tobago Bureau of Standards (TTBS), and Piranha International Limited (PIL), there will be great support received as it relates to the development of project deliverables. Furthermore, other key partners like Caribbean Association of National Telecommunications Organizations (CANTO), Telecommunications Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (TATT), Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) and Digicel Trinidad Limited, will aid in achieving the goal of improving the way we manage e-waste across Trinidad and Tobago.
Be a part of the change! Recycle your old mobile phones!