Mobile Phones are very useful for human beings but very harmful to Gorillas. The majority of mobile phones contain a black mineral called coltan which is mined in the Congo, the homeland of endangered lowland gorillas.
Coltan is used in the electrical capacitors in mobile phones and the majority is mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo where many Gorillas live.
The people that mine the coltan are a long way from shops and other places where food can be bought so have no option but too illegally poach mountain Gorillas for what they call ‘bush meat.’ Up to 1 million tonnes of bush meat is eaten in the Congo every year and is causing major problems to the Gorilla population.
In the past 5 years Gorilla numbers in this area have dropped drastically by as much as 70%.
In order to help save Gorillas more people should recycle their old mobile phones which will help to reduce the amount of mining that is done in the Congo. There are many mobile recycling sites available where people can earn up to £300 in cash for their old and unwanted handsets.