It is said that toner and ink cartridges can take almost a thousand years to decompose. With millions of these cartridges being used and discarded every year the negative environmental impact of just this one item is enormous. However seriously we take the issue of the over-consumption of the earth’s natural resources and waste-storage ability, this fact alone should be enough to disturb our sleep. For those who have children or care about the safety of the environment we will leave to all future generations, it is time to make every reusable item count.

Choosing to use remanufactured toner cartridges will not only save money, but perhaps more importantly it will add a little more weight to the efforts being made to rescue our planet. Toner cartridges consist in part of plastics and metals, both of which are not easily disposed of, but easily recycled. Though arguments are sometimes made that remanufactured toner cartridges many times lead to paper wastage due to poor quality printing, therefore negating any monetary or environmental benefit, this can be countered by our being a little more discerning when purchasing.

Buying cheap often results in our having to spend more to disguise the poor quality of an item, or having to replace it with another and toner cartridges are no exception, so that cost alone should never be the deciding factor. The urgency in finding more economically viable alternatives for indispensable commodities must also be tempered by sound sense. Some recycled cartridges have simply been drilled and refilled and these are the ones that more often than not produce poor quality printing. Most reputable producers of remanufactured ink cartridges have done exactly that: they have remanufactured the cartridges by stripping them down and salvaging what is reusable.

Worn parts that cannot be used in the remanufacturing process will mostly be recycled and utilised in the production of another consumer product thereby slowing the depletion of the earth’s natural resources. It has been estimated that a mono toner cartridge is able to be remanufactured 3.5 times. It does not take a mathematician to calculate the environmental savings on both energy and disposal and of course the carbon footprint of each cartridge would be far smaller and thus more beneficial to the wellbeing of Earth’s troubled atmosphere. Buying these reliably remanufactured cartridges in place of new ones makes sound economic sense for all concerned: not least of these the consumer.

Most human beings including children are either directly or indirectly exposed to the use of ink or toner cartridges daily. Making all aware of the monetary cost and extended implications of the printed word would create a far greater concern for its proper management. Imagine the significant impact on both environment and pocket if everyone chose to go the recycled route. Schools often encourage the recycling of glass, paper and aluminium by placing large receptacles for such unwanted items in easily accessible areas of the school grounds; why not for empty cartridges. Many recycling companies offer monetary compensation for the return of these, which should perhaps inspire most schools to start such a project if they have not yet done so.

Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World, the UK\’s leading specialist in printer cartridges, including toner cartridges and inkjet cartridges.

Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World (http://www.cartridgeworld.co.uk), the UK\’s leading specialist in printer cartridges.

Author Bio: Ben Greenwood is writing on behalf of Cartridge World, the UK\’s leading specialist in printer cartridges, including toner cartridges and inkjet cartridges.

Category: Advice
Keywords: printer cartridges, ink cartridges, toner cartridges