By Nathan Mayberg
LIBERTY — February 3, 2006 – Don’t throw your print cartridges away – they could help somebody find a new home.
Habitat for Humanity’s Sullivan County chapter is collecting used printer cartridges and selling them in order to help build homes in the county for needy families.
Generous donations by the group helped lead to a house being built for a family in Monticello in 2004. In two months, another new home will be built on Dwyer Avenue in Liberty.
Jeremy Gorelick, a member of the organization who is handling the publicity for the campaign, said the cartridges can be sold to printing companies on the open market for $.50 to $1 apiece.
The group is looking to put boxes throughout the county where people can discard their used cartridges. So far, they have drop-off bins at the Sullivan County Government Center in Monticello and Sullivan County annex buildings in Liberty.
On the group’s first pickup day at the county office buildings on Wednesday, 75 cartridges were collected. Alongside the county, Gorelick said some of the county’s well-known employers, including Frontier Insurance, have already started donating cartridges. Another drop-off box is located at the CDC building on Main Street in Liberty.
Habitat is looking for more assistance from local businesses. They are also considering placing collection boxes at town halls and post offices.
The ability to build the new homes comes from more than just ink cartridges, of course. Local contractors have been generous in donating their time, tools and energy to assist in the construction. Contractors are also offered incentives for their work.
Gorelick said that recycling the cartridges serves a double purpose, as it will also reduce the impact on the Sullivan County Landfill.
“Every person is directly or indirectly helping to achieve one of the most basic goals – which is to provide shelter to all people,” he added.
Anybody interested in placing a collection box in their town or business may contact Gorelick at 796-3200.