Mobile operator O2 will today tell its 22 million customers that they will no longer be given a charger as standard when they buy a new handset, in a drive to cut electronic waste and improve energy efficiency.

Mobile phone chargers have become something of a complicated topic for environmentalists, ever since DECC's scientific adviser David Mackay dismissed advice to always unplug chargers in order to save carbon as being akin to 'bailing the Titanic with a teaspoon'.

But despite the relatively modest energy savings that result from turning off unused chargers, mobile phone companies and governments are increasingly concerned about the environmental impact of the 100 million chargers currently circulating around UK homes and offices. According to EU figures, discarded phone chargers alone produced 51,000 tonnes of e-waste a year.

O2's move follows an EU-wide commitment that came into effect last year, requiring all handsets to be eligible to use micro-USB chargers.

Bill Eyres, O2 head of sustainability, told BusinessGreen that the company plans to conduct a pilot this year that will assess how people will respond to the initiative.

He predicted around 40 per cent of customers will still want a new charger, but that a growing number of people will be open to the idea of reusing their old one.

He also said O2 would consider passing on any financial savings that result to customers, despite maintaining that the real driver behind the initiative was the resulting environmental benefits.

O2's commitment to cutting down on chargers is just one of a set of 40 pledges that it will make today as part of its new sustainability blueprint, which is the result of a year long consultation process, overseen by independent thinktank Forum for the Future as well as its employees, customers, and suppliers.

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