Recycle printer cartridges.

Ink cartridges are just like razor blades. They make the initial purchase (printer, blade holder) inexpensive, but they get you with the refills (ink cartridges, razor blades). And the refills get used up so quickly! Recycling the cartridges may not make them less expensive, but it will help reduce waste and preserve the environment. Consider these facts from EnviroSmart :

* Producing one new laser cartridge consumes nearly a gallon of oil and generates almost 2.5 pounds of industrial waste.
* Producing one recycled laser cartridge uses less than half the oil of a new one.
* Two and a half ounces of oil are used for every ink jet cartridge produced.
* Over 86% of all inkjet cartridges sold in this country are thrown away, and over 50% of laser cartridges are deposited in landfills every year.
* Of the 1.2 billion new cartridges sold this year worldwide, only 100 million will come from remanufactured sources.

Thankfully, organizations like EnviroSmart are helping change that statistic. EnviroSmart is the largest recycler of inkjet and laser cartridges in the world. "In the last 10 years, the EnviroSmart program has generated over $17 million for participating businesses, schools and charities." Many offices have rolls of postage paid envelopes addressed to EnviroSmart. Just drop in your empty cartridge, seal and drop it in the mail. They make it so easy!

So if your office supply store doesn't accept your cartridges, or they don't give a discount or free paper in exchange for an empty cartridge, try recycling with EnviroSmart. By the way, they also recycle cell phones. Contact EnviroSmart today!

"The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much, it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little." -Franklin D. Roosevelt, 32nd US President (1882-1945)