Answering the Call of the Wild

Why cell phones are bad for gorillas and how Eco-Cell is helping.

Got a cell phone? Then in your pocket or stuck to your ear is a metallic ore called Coltan, short for Columbite-tantalite, a vital component in the capacitors that control current flow in cell phone circuit boards.

Your i-pod, laptop, DVD player and game console most likely also contain Coltan. This highly desired ore lives in the soils of the rain forest. 80% of Coltan comes from the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The main area where Coltan is mined contains the Kahuzi Biega National Park, home of the highly endangered Mountain Gorilla. In the Park, ground-clearing for mining operations has reduced food and habitat for the gorillas, cutting their numbers nearly in half. Mining has also displaced the local people, leading them to kill gorillas and sell the "bush meat" to the miners and rebel armies that control the area.

Within the Dem. Rep. of Congo as a whole, the number of Eastern Lowland Gorillas in eight national parks has declined by 90% over the past 5 years, leaving only 3000 gorillas total.

There is hope. Companies that use Coltan are beginning to demand that their Coltan only comes from a legitimately mined source and for that fact to be verified on the packaging, much like Dolphin Safe Tuna.

What you can do currently is reduce and recycle. Reduce the amount of electronics, including cell phones, that you buy and recycle them when you are definitely done with them. Recycling these items helps
eliminate the need for more mining and keeps them out of the landfill.

The Oakland Zoo is happy to take your old cell phone and recycle it through companies such as Cartridges for Kids or Eco-Cell.

Eco-Cell, a Kentucky based company, works to help gorillas by encouraging cell phone recycling, educating about the issues and donating funds to support gorilla conservation.

You can also help gorillas by attending a family friendly event at the Oakland Zoo, Gorilla Doctors: Saving Endangered Great Apes, featuring children’s author Pamela Turner and epidemiologist Dr. Lynne Gaffikin on February 6, 2008. Bring in a cell phone to recycle for a free raffle ticket.

Amy Gotliffe is Conservation Manager at The Oakland Zoo.

latitude: -4.03833, longitude: 21.7587