Toner
cartridges - Wellington City Council
Summary
Council currently purchases both new and re-manufactured toner cartridges and recycles used cartridges. The bulk of these are purchased from an existing stationery supplier who partners with the Australasian market-leader in recycling and supplying compatible toners.
Key drivers
Council is keen to ensure the effective functioning of the printer equipment and reduce their internal waste. The Environmentally Friendly Purchasing (EFP) policy clearly outlines the need to "encourage recycling markets by purchasing products with recycled content wherever possible" and "minimise waste at the source (including minimisation of use of packaging materials, and maximising use of recyclable packaging)" which has been a driver in this project.
Project detail
Once emptied, cartridges are collected in council and then returned by the box load to the supplier. Remote Wellington City Council sites arrange their recycling independently.
Council's supplier collects and returns the used toners to a third party. They are then forwarded to their recycling/toner manufacturing facility in Australia where they are refurbished or disposed of as appropriate. The supplier is currently recycling 90% of returned laser cartridges, and is aiming for 98% by September 2004. Ultimately, they are working towards putting zero waste from returned cartridges and their packaging into landfill.
Key challenges
The following challenges have been encountered in purchasing re-manufactured toner cartridges:
- Staff have reported problems with the quality of re-manufactured toner cartridges.
- Some of the printers are leased and the agreements include using specific toners to protect the longevity of the printer.
- There are no guidelines or unified approach to purchasing toner cartridges.
These barriers are the reason that council does not solely purchase re-manufactured toner cartridges. Council hopes to overcome this by finding a reliable supplier and by installing a centralised purchasing system on the staff intranet in the future.
Outcomes of project
Council has been able to reduce waste and cost by returning empty cartridges and receiving a rebate. The value of the rebate is market driven and does not amount to a large sum. The re-manufactured cartridges are cheaper to purchase but the savings are not known as Council does not have a central purchasing unit and has not tracked the number of cartridges that have been purchased or returned as part of this program.
