In the News -
December 2007
Print cartridges don't have to leave permanent mark on environment
LITTLE ROCK - After printing all the holiday cards and envelopes and address
labels, what do you do with the empty print cartridge? Recycle it, says Dr.
Suzanne Hirrel.
"We estimate that more than 350 million cartridges per year are being
discarded in landfills, and that only 30 percent of used printer cartridges are
being recycled," Hirrel, waste management specialist for the University of
Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, says. "The other 70 percent are being
discarded. Of course, these are made of plastic, and plastic comes from oil.
We're just throwing away a lot of resources that could otherwise be reused."
Some cartridge models can be refilled as many as 50 times before they have to
be replaced, although many see only one use before being tossed in the trash. It
can take up to two pints of oil to recycle the cartridges used in copy machines
and office-size printers, and once they're in the landfill they will remain
there for many generations. Cartridges in the landfill can also leak toner dust
or ink residue, adding to the Earth's pollution problem.
Recycling a printer cartridge is simple. Manufacturers often include right in
the package everything you need to ship the larger printer cartridges back to
them.
"A lot of people don't know that if they look in the box or if they look at
the booklet that comes in the box, it'll come with a postage-paid, mail-back
return," says Hirrel.
That means all you have to do with those is pop them back into the box,
attach the label and send it back to the company, where they are generally
refilled or disassembled so that various parts can be reused.
For state office employees, the process is even simpler; those people only
have to send the cartridge back to the warehouse, and once it's there someone
will find the label and send it on its way.
Not only is recycling the best thing you can do for the environment,
recycling printer cartridges is often rewarded.
Some office supply stores offer incentives for recycling cartridges, either
awarding a discount on a new cartridge or giving merchandise in exchange for a
spent one.
There are also companies specializing in printer cartridge recycling and
refilling, offering deep discounts on replacements or refills. Those companies
often even provide pick-up and delivery services for their business customers.
For smaller print cartridges - the ones designed for personal use in most
homes - there other options.
Hewlett-Packard customers, for example, are referred to a Web site where they
can order - free of charge - boxes and labels to return their cartridges.
Schools and other organizations often accept printer cartridges as part of a
fundraising effort, such as Staples' Recycle for Education program. Those groups
are compensated by the companies to which they send the cartridges they collect.
For more information about recycling, visit the extension's Web site,
www.uaex.edu, or contact your county extension
agent. The Cooperative Extension Service is part of the U of A Division of
Agriculture.
December 14, 2007
By Kimberly Dishongh
For the Cooperative Extension Service
Media Contact: Lamar James
Extension Communications Specialist
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2187 or (501) 753-0207
ljames@uaex.edu
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