American recycling has been, well, discarded. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the United States has a combined recycling rate of only 32% for materials that include glass, plastic, cardboard and paper from industrial, commercial and residential trash. In honor of Earth Month this April, UScellular encourages residents to trade in or recycle their old electronic devices to reduce their carbon footprint.
“When it’s time for a new device, our trade-in program allows customers to receive up to $600 in credit toward a new device or accessory instead of an old phone staying in a drawer or being sent to the local landfill,” said Sarah Pearson, Area VP for UScellular. “As customers begin to spring clean, we can also sustainably recycle older wireless devices. Any phone with no estimated trade in value will be sent to suitable recycling facilities.”
In 2023, UScellular customers traded in 242,477 devices through its trade-in program, which diverted 109,110 pounds of e-waste from landfills and avoided more than 309 million gallons of water pollution.
In addition to device trade-in, UScellular offers suggestions on how to utilize technology to improve your carbon footprint:
- Friendly Go Green Challenge – The JouleBug app provides valuable information on how to make changes to your everyday habits at home, work and play more environmentally friendly. You can compete with family members and friends in eco-challenges to make positive changes together.
- Recycle Resource – Recyclenation.com provides users with directions to local recycling centers, hours of operations and a list of accepted recyclable materials. The site also can show if materials, such as metal, construction materials and other large items, can be collected in your area.
- Share Your Treasures – The Freecycle app allows people to give away unwanted but reusable items to people in their community. Users post items to donate or make requests for items on this convenient app.
- Stop Junk Mail – The PaperKarma app can help cut junk mail clutter to help save trees. This app allows users to opt out of mailers that include catalogs, donation requests and former resident’s mailers.
- Auto Ways to Save – Many companies, such as UScellular, offer online bill management to provide customers options for paperless billing and auto payment, which saves time and eliminates waste.
Companies (UScellular included) also offer discounts on monthly bills to enroll in paperless billing options.
This story is based on submitted information and has not been verified by our news team.
This article appears in Restaurant Guide 2024.
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