Commercial printers are increasingly differentiated in the marketplace by their environmental practices – one of which is reducing waste through recycling toner cartridges.
Millions of printer cartridges reach the end of their life in Australia every year and, if they are sent to landfill, they can take between 450 to 1000 years to break down. By recycling them through a program called Cartridges 4 Planet Ark, they are kept out of landfill and can be put to new uses. As well as toner powder, printer cartridges contain materials such as ferrous metal, stainless steel, aluminium, ink, and many types of plastics, all of which can be recycled.
Canon is a founding member of the recycling project Cartridges 4 Planet Ark and has partnered with Close the Loop and Planet Ark to ensure the responsible recycling of ink, laser cartridges, toner bottles and other items. The program is free, independently audited and coordinated through a network of over 30,000 locations nationwide.
According to Paul Whitehead, marketing manager, Canon’s commercial print customers can reduce their impact on the environment and contribute not only to their own sustainability goals, but also to those of their customers.
“We are seeing an increased uptake by commercial print providers for the program. As its profile is raised we envisage this uptake will grow. It is a wonderful service for our customers provided at no cost to them,” he said.
At present only a small number of commercial printers are involved in the program, however as demand increases for all businesses to reduce their impact on the environment, Canon expects the number to increase.
“Government and education departments as well as commercial printers with environmentally responsible customers have been the early adopters, but we envisage that more customers will become involved as awareness increases,” said Whitehead.
“As more and more businesses take proactive steps to reduce their environmental impact, this demand is passed on to their commercial print providers. By partnering with Canon and enrolling in the Cartridges for Planet Ark program, commercial print providers can easily reduce their impact on the environment.”
The program so far has saved the equivalent of 1,718 tonnes of waste.
According to Taz Nakamasu, managing director, Canon Oceania, the company’s involvement is based upon its corporate philosophy, Kyosei, which is founded on a responsible approach to working. “We greatly appreciate the joint efforts of our customers who continue to strive to support our sustainability goals,” he said.