The Tokyo Olympic organizing committee said it will recycle mobile phones and other small electronic devices to extract precious metals and use them to make "environmental MEDALS," the BBC reported.

The 2020 organizing committee decided on the above measures on Tuesday, the report said, adding that the slim measures will be announced later.The "2020 Gold Rush" project was launched by Aichi Prefecture's Shigakuikan University, Aichi Prefecture's Ophu City and Renet Recycler.

Hideto Okumura, mayor of Ophthalu, has called for MEDALS to be made from recycled metal to show the world Japan's recycling technology and environmental efforts, the Asahi Shimbun newspaper reported.Japan is said to waste 650,000 tonnes of mobile phones and other small electronic devices each year, and it is believed that 280,000 tonnes of usable metals such as gold, silver, copper and steel could be extracted from the waste, known as "urban mines".

At a press conference in late October this year, promoters of the project unveiled the prototype of a six-centimeter-diameter bronze medal, made of silver and covered in gold.The MEDALS are made from precious metals extracted from salvaged computer equipment, with a total of six grams of recycled gold.