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Many people simply throw their used ink and toner cartridges to the trash when they are finished using them. However, according to various toner cartridge articles, that ink or toner cartridge will remain in the trash long after the person that threw it there leaves this planet. Thanks to a certain kind of polymer that is used to create the plastic used in cartridges, these products will take anywhere from 500 to 700 years to decompose.

Toner cartridge articles encourage people to go the extra mile and donate their used cartridges to a recycling program. These programs are usually sponsored by a third party company that takes the used cartridges, cleans them and repairs them to create new toner and ink cartridges. Then the products are refilled with the third party company’s own formula of ink or toner. Donating your cartridges to these kinds of programs is great for the consumer, because remanufactured cartridges, as they are called, are sold at much cheaper price points than the original brand name versions.

Remember that one unopened cartridge has a shelf life of 2.5 years, so it may be a good idea to buy your remanufactured cartridges in bulk. That way you are always prepared throughout the year with a cartridge, you receive a bulk discounts (as many online retailers offer) and you can save your cartridges in the end to send them all into the recycling center together. Then they will start the process of becoming new all over again.