Recycling Printer Ink Cartridges
One of the great environmental problems of the modern world is used printer ink cartridges. We go through hundreds of millions of these in a year and most of them end up in a landfill. This is a horrible waste since almost the whole thing can be recycled and turned into other product. Recycling printer ink cartridges is very easy, there are lots of places that you can take them so don't let them end up sitting in a landfill.
The first thing that you should do before you recycle your printer ink cartridge is determine whether or not you can reuse it. Most ink cartridges can be refilled. There are kits available that will allow you to do this. Not only does it help to protect the environment but it will save you a lot of money, new ink cartridges are expensive. The other option that you have is to take your empty cartridges to an office supply store that can refill them for you. There are lots of stores that will do this however not all will so you may have to call around to find one.
Eventually your ink cartridges will wear out and you will no longer be able to get the same quality of printing out of them. At that point you will no longer want to refill them and you will need to return them to be recycled. There are a few options that you have for that; one is to take them to the local recycling center. Most of these centers have programs in place for recycling ink cartridges, again you are going to want to call ahead to make sure that they take them. There are also some office supply stores that will accept empty cartridges for recycling. Do not put them in your regular recycling bin.
Another option that you may want to consider is donating your used ink cartridges to schools and other clubs or charities. There are a number of programs that will pay these organizations for each ink cartridge they return. It is the modern day equivalent of the bottle drive. If you have a child you should contact their school and any sports teams or clubs that they are involved in and see if they collect cartridges as a fund raiser. It is an easy way to get rid of the cartridges and help a good cause.
The last thing that you want to do is let your ink cartridges end up in the landfill. They are really not good for the environment. They are made mostly of plastic which has to be melted down. In addition there will always be some ink left inside the cartridge. None of this is good for the environment. The plastic in ink cartridges can be reused and that makes a lot more sense than allowing them to fill up a landfill.