Our new ‘Cartridges 4 Planet Ark’ TV Community Service Announcement stars some tongue-tied primary school students. However, that certainly doesn’t dampen their enthusiasm for recycling, nor their imagination.
As awareness grows that our current rates of consumption and waste are unsustainable, necessity will drive the move towards a zero waste approach. To make the shift we need to innovate and think of waste materials as a resource.
Product stewardship programs like ‘Cartridges 4 Planet Ark’ are essential in moving towards zero waste systems, as they set up the basis for collecting used consumer items and converting them from a waste product into a resource for making new products.
Through their involvement the participating manufacturers Brother, Canon, Epson, HP, Konica Minolta, Oce and Kyocera have enabled more than 31 million cartridges, equivalent to over 13,400 tonnes of materials, to be recycled since program began in 2003.
Recycled printer cartridges are turned into a wide range of items including commodities like aluminium, steel and over six different plastic types, new products like cartridges, pens, rulers, eWood™ used for park benches, fencing and garden beds and TonerPave™, an asphalt additive that improves the performance and longevity of roads.
If they are sent to landfill printer cartridges can take between 450 to 1000 years to break down, which is why Planet Ark campaign ambassador and seven-time World Champion surfer Layne Beachley is calling on everyone to recycle their printer cartridges responsibly. Check out the new TV Community Service Announcement below featuring some primary school stars!
Take Action
- Sign up your school or workplace for a free collection box
- Find your nearest retail drop-off location
- Check out Cool Australia's free lessons for Year 5 & 6 or Year 7 & 8