waste reduction management
Inkjet cartridges - Environmental issues
Over 700 million cartridges were thrown away world-wide in 2003 - and since more and more people use inkjet cartridges this amount will continue to grow year on year.
Empty cartridges contain residual toner powder, ink, a plastic casing, aluminium and other parts. These parts are all non-biodegradable and they will take more than 1000 years to decompose in landfill sites.
The remanufacturing of cartridges as an alternative to producing new ones currently reduces world demand of oil by 300,000 barrels and saves 17,000 tons of aluminium as well as 10,000,000 tons of timber. Besides helping to reduce carbon emissions, a major cause of global warming, it conserves resources and reduces waste.
1.5 pints of crude oil are needed to produce one cartridge. In the last 6 months alone inkjet cartridge recycling has saved more than 50 million litres of oil, more than the Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska's Prince William Sound in 1989.
Landfill sites contain buried treasure worth around £500 million in raw materials from discarded printer cartridges.
> This document was last modified: 29 August 2006
