Environment message that has bells on

An ELECTRONICS store in Vietnam is ringing in the holidays with a 15-foot Christmas tree made from more than 2500 unusable cellular phones.

Nguyen Trai, a store manager at Westcom Electronics in the southern city of My Tho, says ten workers spent two weeks building the cellular Christmas tree that he hopes will raise awareness about hazardous waste and promote environmental responsibility.

The glittering, cone-shaped creation has been on display outside the store in Tien Giang Province. Between 700 and 800 people visit daily, Mr Trai said.

Westcom plans to auction its tree next year and donate the proceeds to charity.