Printer cartridges
Throughout Australia more than 18 million print cartridges are thrown out every year, amounting to more than 5000 tonnes of waste – of which 80 percent ends up as landfill.
Creating new print cartridges consumes a lot of energy and resources such as water, transport, material and labour. Recycling materials into new products often uses less energy and leaves natural resources intact.
Some substances, such as the aluminium used in print cartridges, can be recycled indefinitely without any loss of quality.
The chemicals inside toner and inkjet cartridges can leak into landfill when disposed of incorrectly. These chemicals can then leach into nearby groundwater and waterways.
Some of the materials able to be recovered from cartridges when properly recycled are aluminium, steel, plastic, toner, ink and foam. These are then either recycled into new products or assigned to new applications.
Getting the most out of printer cartridges
- Before you print, ask yourself “Is it really necessary to print this document?”
- Select the “draft” setting on the print options on your computer to use less ink per page.
- If you are just proofing a document (or it is not the final copy), try using the ‘multiple pages per sheet’ option, which will help you save ink as well as paper.
- When transferring documents to another person, use email rather than printing a hard copy.
- Consider cartridges that can be refilled. Reusing cartridges, like many products, is cheaper, puts less strain on resources and maximises the life of the product. Your local computer store should be able to point you in the right direction.
How to recycle old cartridges
You have a few options when it comes to recycling your empty print cartridges:
- You can place your used printer cartridges in specially marked boxes which can be found in any Australia Post, Harvey Norman, Officeworks, Dick Smith Electronics or Tandy location.
- Alternatively, you can find your closest collection agent by logging onto www.recyclingnearyou.com.au.
Make sure you do not place cartridges into your domestic recycling bin – because of their complex design they require a special dismantling process and are not suitable for household waste recycling.
