We want your toners! Call for recycling
In 2021, TimesLIVE published an article outlining the extent of South Africa’s e-waste problem, stating that “only a fraction of the estimated 6.9 million tonnes of e-waste generated each year is recycled. The rest ends up in landfills or is exported to other countries”.
As a technology company with a core philosophy of “Doing the right thing as a human being”, Kyocera is committed to best environmental practice. As such, we design sustainable products with our planet in mind, making sure to minimise our end products (like toner cartridges) that could end up as e-waste. And, even then, we have a plan to reduce waste through our recycling programme.
Top 10 South African-based printer brands use a local recycling company to ensure that materials are properly disposed of or reused, and we are part of that top 10. As well as being a service for our customers, we see this as our responsibility to not only recycle the plastic from toners, but to create something meaningful as a result.
To achieve this we’ve enlisted the services of Carbon Footprint Recycling, which turns old toners into concrete-based planter boxes.
We offer to recycle our customers’ electronic waste ethically and morally. And for potential customers, we provide the certainty that we don’t just do business for short-term financial gains. We take a long term view to ensure that we secure limited natural resources for future generations in an ethical manner, which aligns to our core values.
The initiative needs input from our staff, partners and customers and we need you to do your part by helping us sign up more participants in the recycling programme.
The process is straightforward. Companies simply send a participation request to Kyocera. They will then receive a recycling bin to collect all makes of used printer cartridges, along with a plastic liner. When the bin is full, the organisation requests a collection from Kyocera and the full waste bin liner is swapped for a new one. The resulting planter boxes are given to communities where they use them to grow vegetables and other plants.
Companies that participate will benefit from hassle-free good corporate responsibility and citizenship, earn enterprise development points, and receive a recycling certificate every quarter, providing proof of participation which contributes to compliance with the Waste Act.
For more information, email collections@dza.kyocera.com, or call +27 (0)11 595 2711.
David Welters - Solutions Architect - KYOCERA Document Solutions South Africa
