SierraScape December 2003 - January 2004
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by Diane Albright
Endangered Species and Biodiversity Chair

A permanent solution for recycling hi-tech equipment for our region remains a dilemma, as those of you know that attended our October general meeting on this topic.

Meanwhile, in the St. Louis region, a unique opportunity has been facilitated by the St. Louis Zoo and sponsored by the local chapter of the Zoo's professional organization, American Association of Zoo Keepers, which permits used cell phones to be recycled, and simultaneously helps several endangered species. From now (started September 20, 2003) until March 20, 2004, take your unwanted cell phone to the St. Louis Zoo. Collection bins for the phones are located at each entrance. These unwanted cell phones will go toward a conservation effort to help protect the orangutans of Borneo and Sumatra.

The St. Louis Zookeepers' association is coordinating its collection program with the Wireless Foundation. The Foundation refurbishes and then sells or donates the phones to various causes, (see website below.) The money collected is being donated to the nonprofit Balikpapan Orangutan Society.

Orangutans are one of the most endangered species in the world. Among primatologists, it is widely acknowledged that we will witness the orangutan's extinction from the wild in 5-10 years. Orangutans share 97% of the same DNA code as humans, which makes them evolutionarily one of our closest relatives. In the wild they live to be 35-40 years old and in captivity they can live to be 50 years old.

The cell phone story continues with another environmental twist. Presently, the manufacture of cell phones use coltan, which is the common term for a metallic ore, colobotantalite. When refined, the chemical element, tantalum(Ta) is produced. This element is twice as dense as steel, resistant to heat and corrosion, and stores and releases an electric charge. It is the electric charge property that makes it especially attractive to manufactures. As a heavy metal, like mercury and lead, it is environmentally undesirable, however.

The environmental story gets more complex since coltan deposits used for the phone chip are found and mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a country in Africa that has for many decades experienced civil wars and poverty. Because of the civil and political turmoil, coltan is mined both legally and illegally.

Coltan mining occurs where it directly threatens the habitat of thousands of species including the okapi, forest elephants and lowland gorillas. This region of the world contains some of the last strongholds for the lowland gorilla.

Within the cell phone industry, alternative materials are being investigated, but to date tantalum is refined from ore obtained in the Democratic Republic of the Congo under precarious circumstances.

The following websites offer additional details for orangutan conservation, cell phone recycling, and coltan, respectively: www.orangutan.com; www.wirelessfoundation.org; www.motorola.com

Visit the St. Louis Zoo and see the animal species mentioned in this article. Drop off an unwanted cell phone and help the environment.