Cartridges for Planet Ark hits 5M mark

The ‘Cartridges 4 Planet Ark' program is sponsored by the likes of Lexmark, Hewlett-Packard, Brother, Konica Minolta, Panasonic, Epson and Canon, together with recycling partner, Close the Loop.

Using Australian technology, the program helps to facilitate sustainable use of valuable resources as all of the items dropped into 'Cartridges 4 Planet Ark' recycling boxes are sent to a zero-waste-to-landfill facility.

A spokesperson for Planet Ark said components collected for recycling are used to produce eWood which makes outdoor furniture, fencing and bollards, fuel to replace natural gas and chemical spill clean-up kits.

In the 5 years since ‘Cartridges 4 Planet Ark' began, around 17,000 Australian businesses have taken action to address the growing problem of e-waste by recycling their cartridges through the program.

However, more than 18 million printer cartridges still go to landfill every year. This equates to approximately 3,000 tonnes of plastic, 1,500 tonnes of ferrous metals, 400 tonnes of aluminium, 260 kilograms of gold as well as a significant amount of residual toner powder, ink, packaging and other materials entering the waste stream.

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