Local Environmental Change Can Impact The World Globally

Enrvironmental changes in local communities can impact the world.   

Many people seem to view environmental issues as problems that happen elsewhere. They do not recognize, perhaps even deny, that it is happening in their own backyard. 

The Not-In-My-Backyard or NIMYB phenomenon is taking place not only in Canadians' minds, but the whole of North America. 

People tend to rate their own communities as having better environmental quality. At the same time, agree that the biggest problem in the world today is the environment. 

Seeing environmental problems as a whole means that each and every community should work hard to create a better environmental future. 

This means changes should be made locally as well as globally. 

President and CEO of World Wildlife Fund-Canada once stated that, "We need to work hard to make sure people know local actions have global impact. And vice versa." 

Many believe they can make a difference, but lack the motivation to act. To reduce environmental impact typically means a change in people's lifestyle. This is the biggest obstacle for people when it comes to caring for their environment. 

Simple changes that can help the environment include: 

• greenhouse gas emissions by driving less
• getting rid of rising algae blooms across North America, that can cause illness in people and pets
• recycling paper products
• recycling print cartridges from homes or the office
• turning off faucets while toothbrushing 

The most important step is getting rid of the Not-In-My-Backyard mentality. Doing so can help people recognize the issues within their own communities. 

In the end, changes made in local communities can make a huge impact on the environment in a global scale.

Promoting proper disposal of E-waste

It is easy to preach recycling to our communities. Households typically separate food, electronic wastes, and paper in order to be good citizens. Some of these wastes are not toxic and can easily be recycled or reused. However, there are many electronic waste products that can be harmful to us and our environment.

Getting rid of unwanted TV's, cellphones, printers, wiring and other old electronics is a difficult process. Landfills, storage, and exporting to developing countries have all been used to get rid of the waste. However, not one has resolved our problem with hazardous electronic waste or e-waste.

A disturbing fact about e-waste is that some large companies ship their waste to developing countries like China, India, and Pakistan. Companies save money by exporting their waste to these countries instead of sending it to proper recycling centres in the U.S. or Canada. E-waste creates hazardous conditions for the developing country's local people and environment.

In 2003, an article written by Jim Puckett summarized the Basel Action Network (BAN) report Exporting Harm: The High Tech Trashing of Asia. This exposed North America's willingness to send e-waste to developing countries in order to save money.  E-waste recycling in these developing countries involve "backyard burning." The labourers would pick up scrap wiring or electronic parts then burn them in open space. According to the article, this can cause the materials to release fumes which are harmful to human health. 

Proper disposal is necessary in order to get rid of e-wastes safely. BAN, a global organization who promote sustainable waste management practices, calls for better policies and to put a stop on exporting wastes to developing countries. There are also waste management companies who invest state-of-the-art electronic recycling equipment to properly dispose of e-waste. Governments and large companies should look to these waste management companies to properly dispose of their e-waste.

Not only is e-waste the responsibility of governments and big companies, we can also do our part by reducing and reusing many of the products we purchase. For example, we can help by recycling ink or laser cartridges or printers. Simply bring or call IMSinkspot.com for more information. This can significantly reduce our country's waste as well as help developing countries. 

This article was brought to you by IMS Inc., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of the highest quality manufactured laser printer, inkjet and ribbon cartridges. Visit us at: http://www.imsinkspot.com

Ways for the Paper Industry to Reverse the Damage Being Done to Forests

Saving paper is not just about using the blue bin to recycle paper. The paper industry also needs to take responsibility. Logging by some businesses in the paper industry can cause deforestation, increase climate change, and negatively impact wildlife that depend on these forests. Paper mills can also cause toxins to be discharged in the water system. These water pollutants include toxic chlorine compounds and sulphur dioxide that may cause lake acidification. Responsible paper manufacturing needs to be done in order to stop the impact on our environment.

There are ways for the paper industry to reverse the damage that is being done to the forests. Investing in new plants, retrofitting existing plants, heat recovery and increased paper recycling; can help reduce carbon dioxide emissions from the manufacturing process of paper.

As individuals we can do our part by ensuring we continue to recycle paper or perhaps increase the habit of recycling. We can also purchase paper from manufacturers who are taking steps in a cleaner paper manufacturing process. You can do this by checking out certified papers such as FSC or PEFC options. FSC and PEFC are organizations that promote responsible forest management internationally.

Keep in mind that saving the environment starts from responsible consumers and manufacturers.

This article was brought to you by IMS Inc., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of the highest quality manufactured laser printer, inkjet and ribbon cartridges. Visit http://www.imsinkspot.com

Recycle More Than Ever with Ontario's Blue Bin Program

Ontarians have been using the Blue Bin program for many years. Since it's official launch in 2004, there are over 95 percent of Ontarians who take part in this program today. More than 900,000 tonnes of waste have been diverted from landfills as a result of this program. People now have consciously made an effort to recycle more than ever.

Even with the Blue bin program's outstanding achievements in reducing waste, some are still unsure on what really goes into the Blue bin. To help with this confusion, here's a list of items that go in the blue bin and ones that do not.

Items that CAN Be Recycled (Durham region)

• Glass Bottles and Jars
• Aluminum Cans and Clean Pie Trays
• Steel cans (metal beverage and food cans)
• Empty Aerosol Cans (with lids removed)
• Empty Paint Cans (with lids removed)
• Tubs and Lids (containers for spreads, yoghurt, cottage cheese)
• Newspapers, magazines, catalogues, telephone books and paperbacks
• Household papers (letters, envelopes, bulk mailings)
• Corrugated Cardboard
• Boxboard Cartons (cereal, tissue and detergent boxes)
• Gable Top Cartons (cream, milk, juice)
• Drink cartons (juice, soup and wine boxes)
• Plastic bottles with a twist-off top (up to 10 liters in size)

Items that CANNOT Be Recycled (Durham region)

• Glass (drinking glasses, dishes, crystal, window glass, light bulbs)
• Aluminum Foil
• Plastic Film (e.g. grocery or shopping bags)
• Styrofoam Packaging Polystyrene (nursery trays, clear muffin trays)
• Containers larger than 10 litres in size

This is a general list of items that can or cannot be put in the blue bin. Each municipality may have a slightly different list. However, all have a general idea of what goes in the Blue bin. Hopefully, this list will clarify confusion and will allow for proper waste disposal.

This article was brought to you by IMS Inc., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of the highest quality manufactured laser printer, inkjet and ribbon cartridges.Visit http://www.imsinkspot.com.

Tips on Reducing Carbon Footprint

What is carbon footprint? According to Clayton Sandell, from ABC news, it is "the measure of the amount of carbon dioxide that goes into the atmosphere as you go about your daily life."

Each one of us emits carbon dioxide to the atmosphere while we use normal gadgets at home and at work. The carbon is emitted by the power plants that produce the power to run or recharge electronic and mechanical equipment.

By following these simple tips, we can make our world a cleaner and safer place to live.

1. Unplug electronics when not in use.
2. Turn the lights off in rooms that are not in use
3. Do not leave the faucet running while brushing your teeth.
4. Print on both sides of the paper
5. Use refillable ink cartridges
6. Use recyclable paper
7. Reuse envelopes, folder or binders
8. Carpool to work
9. Maintain proper tire pressure to save on gas
10. Do not leave your car idle for too long
11. Walk, bike, or take public transportation.

The higher our carbon footprint, the more pollutants we release in the atmosphere. These are just a few of the things we can change in our habits in order to save our atmosphere.

This article was brought to you by IMS Inc., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of the highest quality manufactured laser printer, inkjet and ribbon cartridges. Visit http://www.imsinkspot.com.

How to Choose the Smart Printer that Saves Energy

Many businesses make an effort to reduce the use of paper and printing. However, we cannot achieve a 100% paperless office, at least not in the near future. This makes it important to choose the best printer or printers that not only use ink sparingly, but also saves energy.

Some appliances including printers have Energy star symbols attached to them. For printers to qualify for this symbol they would need to:

1.      Consume a set level of energy per week (Total Electricity Consumption
Approach – TEC), or;
2.      Must automatically enter low-power modes of a prescribed level (Operating
Mode Approach – OM).

These two criteria are reliant on the type of printer engine, product speed, and product size.

Under the OM Approach, a standard sized inkjet printer with a speed of 25 inches per minute should have:

1.      Go into sleep mode after 30 minutes of idle time.
2.      Consume a maximum of 1W of Standby power.
3.      Consume no more than 3W of power in Sleep mode.

Choosing an appropriate printer technology and capability can help reduce your business’ energy consumption. For example, if you do not require high quality images or printing speed then you may not need a laser printer or colour inkjet printer. A regular inkjet (black and white) printer would produce near-laser quality printer outs and would be an energy efficient alternative to laser printers. However, if your office requires printing large volume of paper then a faster printer (like laser) will probably be your best bet. They consume less energy per page.

Another important feature is energy consumption during standby mode. Consider how your office prints documents. Does the printer sit on idle for short or long periods? If your answer the latter, it is advisable to choose a model that reduces its energy consumption while in stand-by mode.

Remember to ask your vendor specifically for the printer’s energy consumption during printing, idling and energy-saver details before making a decision. This will help make your business energy smart. This article was brought to you by IMS Inc., one of Canada’s leading suppliers of the highest quality
manufactured laser printer, inkjet and ribbon cartridges. Visit http://www.imsinkspot.com.

Why You Should Avoid an Inkjet Printer from Being Idle for Too Long

Keeping an inkjet printer idle for months on end is not the best way to maintain the printer or to save on ink. To keep the printer and ink cartridges properly functioning, it needs regular cleaning and maintenance.

How to maintain your inkjet printer:

Newer printers have self cleaning system that is built into the inkjet printer. However, older style printers do not. Each manufacturer has their own specific cleaning instructions that are printed in the manual. It gives tips on how to clean the printer head, rollers and ink cartridges inside the printer.  If you no longer have the original manual, manufacturers will normally have it in their website.

The simplest thing to do is use your printer regularly. This will keep the printer and its ink cartridge running smoothly. Leaving the printer unused for long periods of time, may cause internal problems. Print at least once every week to ensure that the printer and ink cartridge are working properly. Even if it’s a test page, at least it is being used.

Printer heads clogging up is one of the biggest problems with ink jet printers. To ensure proper printer function, always test your printer by printing a test page. This must be done on a regular basis in order to check if the printer or ink cartridges are working fine. To clean the ink cartridge, remove it from the printer and clean them off using a Q-tip dipped in a bit of water. Wipe the inside of your inkjet printer at least once a week using a non lint cloth. This helps the printer’s print quality.

Following these few tips will help maintain your ink cartridge and printer.

Why use a refillable ink cartridge?

Refilling ink cartridges have been a popular way to reduce, reuse, and recycle for many people. Throwing away ink cartridges is like throwing batteries away. We all know that this is not good for the environment.

One big reason why people prefer refillable cartridges is that it is more cost effective than buying new ones. Refilling a cartridge could save you up to 60% less than a brand name ink cartridge. Most brand name companies would argue that refilled cartridges do not have the same quality. They claim that photos printed using refilled cartridge can fade quicker than their brand name counter parts. However, a study conducted by Quality Logic proved that the quality of refilled cartridges print outs are comparable to those of new cartridges.

Another reason to choose refillable ink cartridges is that brand names like HP, Canon, and Brother come out with newer printer models almost every year. Since older models are more likely discontinued, the same goes for its ink cartridge. There may be times that you will not find the same model ink cartridge for your old printer.

Not only are refillable ink cartridges more cost-effective, they are also safer for our environment. With the quality of ink improving in the recent years, the use of refillable ink cartridges are in demand

Why Should You Use Remanufactured Print Cartridges

Over 330 million ink and toner cartridges are
discarded into North American landfills.

According to Statistics Canada, over 350 million ink and toner cartridges are discarded into North American landfills. That number is rising by 12% annually. By recycling your laser and ink jet printer cartridges, you will help divert the amount of plastic that end up into landfills. These days, most cartridges can be recycled up to six times and are guaranteed by most manufacturers to work as if they were brand new.

To recycle your used print cartridge, read the instructions in the box of your new laser or ink jet cartridge to find out how to recycle it. Some manufacturers will provide instructions, packaging materials and free postage if you wish to recycle your old cartridge. These cartridges are reconditioned, refilled, and used again, using all new toner and components to our ISO 9001/2008 and ISO 14001 standards.

By taking the steps necessary to reduce the need for new materials, you become more proactive in environmental conservation. You can contact IMSinkspot to learn more about your options. IMSinkspot is Canada’s premiere eco-friendly print supplies manufacturer. IMSinkspot does their part to help reduce landfill waste and affect positive environmental change. Contact IMSinkspot today, and they can provide you more information about remanufacturing your old laser printer cartridge.