Ink Cartridge Recycling Tips
Written by admin on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 in Computers and technology.
We’re slowly, but surely, becoming a society that cares about being “green”. What does it mean to be “green”? Being green means that you are doing everything that you can to help the environment. You can be green in many ways, like shutting off the water when you brush your teeth. If you turn off the water while you’re brushing your teeth, you’re being green as well. Being green is great, but most people forget that you can be green with your ink cartridge.
In today’s world, we are still printing our documents daily which means that we require ink cartridges to print out our documents. An ink cartridge is made of plastic and are disposed of constantly. In fact, one estimate states that over thirteen print cartridges are thrown away in the United States every second, which equals about 375 million print cartridges thrown away into landfills every year. The decomposition process for these plastics takes close to thousands of years. This is definitely not what being green is all about.
It’s absolutely possible to recycle an ink cartridge, and, in fact, can help to make you money as well! Many companies are shifting to reusing ink cartridges, it takes 80% less energy than buying new ones and it protects the earth as well! Sending in an ink cartridge is the first step in being “green”. Dozens of companies now will actually pay for a used ink cartridge. They send you an envelope that you can place the ink cartridge in, and then, after they receive the cartridges, they send you a check. The amount is not high, but repeated recycling can allow that amount to add up quickly.
Some office supply stores have drop-off locations where you can drop off your used ink cartridge. This can save you a bit of time if you’re going to be running errands near one, and you may be able to get something out of it as well! Many companies offer incentives to recycle and ink cartridge, such as through giving you a ream of paper or some other product for turning in your ink cartridge.
Many schools offer ink cartridge fund raisers, so you can get rid of your ink cartridge while at the same time help with the fundraiser. In an office, you can set up recycling bins to allow your coworkers to place their cartridges in the bin instead of in the trash. Then either you or the company can turn them in and can help your business to be green while making a little profit at the same time! There are many ways for you to recycle your ink cartridge, start today?