Smartphones have seen rapid growth to the point where they are practically essential in our lives. Around the world we buy an estimated 5,000 million of them every year. However, using them and getting rid of them represents a significant environmental burden, with over 50 chemical elements and nearly 40 kilos of raw material needed to produce a single device. Mobile phones contain critically valuable materials such as copper, cobalt and lithium, all with extraction processes that have a strong social and environmental impact.

Repairing or reusing a mobile extends its life, reducing the generation of electronic waste (WEEE) and avoiding the extraction of new natural resources.

The goal of Positive Devices, an initiative in collaboration with the Catalan Waste Agency, is to make it easier for people to correctly manage mobile phones they no longer use, thanks to the installation of small containers at green points. With funding from the Fundació Ecoasimelec, the labour insertion company Andròmines collects the phones from the containers and takes them to its prep centre to check if they can be reused.

There the phones are securely wiped of data they may contain and checked to see if they can be reused. If so, they go through a reconditioning process where they are checked and repaired. Mobiles that are unsuitable are sent for recycling to recover as much material as possible.

For each mobile phone recycled:

• 400 litres of water are saved.
• 30 kg of CO₂ in emissions is avoided.
• The extraction and consumption of 40 kg of raw materials is avoided.

Part of the Climate Plan, this initiative strengthens Barcelona commitment to the Zero Waste Plan.