Turn off those laser printers

Aside from the electricity wasted by leaving printers on when they're not in use, there's also potential health and safety considerations. This study, conducted last year in Australia, outlines the concerns.

If you work near certain models of laser printers, you might be breathing the same amount of ultra-fine particle pollution as if a smoker were puffing away in the next cubicle, according to a study by Australian scientists.

What can you do?
1) If you have a desktop printer, turn it on only when needed and then turn it off.
2) If you're at OPSEU head office, send your print jobs to the print shop if you need multiple copies. The copiers there use different technology than laser printers.
3) Turn off all shared printers at the end of each work day.

Tip of the hat to Emily Visser for this article.