If you received a new mobile phone at Christmas, don't leave your old phone to die slowly, gathering dust in the bottom of a drawer.

Instead, make use of RE:MOBILE - the national mobile phone recycling scheme run by the New Zealand Telecommunications Forum (TCF).

People are being encouraged to recycle their old mobile phones. File photo.

Unwanted mobile phones can be disposed of at any of the 180+ conveniently-located collection bins at the retail outlets of 2degrees Mobile, Spark, Vodafone and other public places.

From there, they are collated and checked by SwapKit - TCF's appointed recycling partner.

Reusable phones are quality assessed, refurbished and then distributed to emerging countries for resale, hopefully providing many years of service to their new owner.

Inoperable phones are also collected as part of the RE:MOBILE Scheme with approximately 95 per cent of the components reused.

New Zealanders concerned about what might happen to their old data can learn how to remove this from their mobile devices by visiting www.remobile.org.nz

TCF CEO Geoff Thorn explains the purpose of RE:MOBILE.

'The scheme helps to reduce landfill in New Zealand, minimise the number of mobile phones going to waste, reuse phones that can be given a new lease of life, and recycle component parts of phones that can't.

'It's an industry initiative led by the TCF in which all the major mobile phone operators work together.”

Geoff says the proceeds go to charity and cover the collection and handling of the mobile devices.

RE:MOBILE received accreditation from the Ministry for the Environment in July 2014.

Since then, more than 150,000 mobile phones have been successfully recycled or reused under the scheme, and approximately 18 tonnes of potential harmful substances diverted from landfill.