Printer ink cartridges will inevitably get exhausted. Instead of replacing the old cartridges with a new cartridge, it’s recommended that one develops a habit of buying green cartridges or remunufactured/recycled ink cartridges. Recycled ink cartridges not only work as efficiently as the new ones, they are cheaper too.

In the US, more than 375 million used ink cartridges are disposed annually, which amounts to ten ink cartridges being disposed every second! The empty cartridges are predominantly dumped in landfills or are incinerated, both of which are environmentally hazardous methods. Furthermore, almost 50% of toner cartridges and 70% of ink printer cartridges are never recycled, which contributes to the growing mountain of ink cartridge wastes. The plastic found in the cartridges take almost a millennium to decompose since they are made of engineering grade polymers. The printer ink is dangerous to the environment as well. To counter the problems, environmental awareness groups and new legislation are showing new ways to deal with used printer cartridges.

Recycling printer ink cartridges has numerous benefits. First of all, recycling printer ink cartridges do not compromise the quality of printouts and it doesn’t harm the printers in the long run. Secondly, recycling empty ink cartridges save a significant amount of tax since the waste management and landfill costs are drastically reduced. Thirdly, a recycled printer cartridge conserves energy and natural resources by reducing the requirement of virgin materials. In fact, almost 97 percent of the materials which are used to make printer cartridges can be recycled. Additionally, printer cartridges can be recycled multiple times.

On average, cartridges are recycled six to seven times, with the maximum limit reaching fifteen. Purchasing recycled printer cartridges also helps support local economy and generates employment since re-manufacturing businesses generally employ thousands of employees. A few other important reasons why people should recycle printer ink cartridges include saving oil, steel, and aluminium in large quantities. A case in point is that the manufacture of laser print cartridges uses almost two liters of oil. Since oil is a non- renewable resource, recycling printer cartridges is indeed a very environmentally friendly proposition.

Various groups have now realized the importance and benefits of recycled printer cartridges. They are playing a proactive role in recycling printer ink cartridges. Churches, individuals, businesses, and schools are taking positive steps towards recycling ink printer cartridges. Individuals generally use around four to eight cartridges per year. A number of individuals are now sending the used cartridges to remanufacturing and recycling units. Businesses are the entities which can be considered as the worst offenders since they dispose hundreds of cartridges each year. Schools also use up a sizable amount of print cartridges each year. As the majority of recycling units make an upfront payment for used cartridges, business, schools, and individuals are making a substantial amount of money by selling the used printer ink cartridges to the printer recycling units.

Recycling printer cartridges is a practice which more and more people should get into the habit of. A recycled printer cartridge saves money and saves natural resources. The environment is already saddled with depleting natural resources and increasing pollution. This is why everybody can make an invaluable contribution to future generations by recycling printer cartridges because it helps to preserve the environment. 

For additional resources on recycling ink cartridges, refer to the following sites: