Keep waste streams separate for reuse, recycling, or treatment. Keep nonhazardous materials from becoming contaminated. Reducing the Toxicity and Quantity of Printing Wastes Waste reduction entails a reduction in both the toxicity and the quantity of waste being generated. Possible substitutes are vesicular, diazo, electrostatic, or photopolymer film. Recover silver from wastewater.
Recovery systems are commercially available and widely used.
Inks Use inks that have been formulated with waste reduction and energy conservation in mind. For gravure and flexographic printing, water-based inks are gaining in popularity as pressure to curtail solvent emissions is driving the research needed to improve the quality of these inks. The time that it takes to fill, operate, and empty an ink recycler is just about the same as the time required to prepare waste ink for disposal. Special non-drying aerosols can be sprayed onto ink foundations to prevent the ink from drying overnight or during shutdowns. A common technique is the blending of various left-over colored inks to produce black ink.