T 4.66 Impairment of health and environment due to printers, copiers, and all-in-one devices

Although a large amount of information is stored digitally, paper documents are still often indispensable. Many people prefer to read or edit documents on paper rather than on the screen. Printers and copiers will therefore remain an indispensable resource for a long time to come. Their use, however, may cause damage to health.

Laser printers and copiers usually use a dry toner that is transferred to the paper. The dust-like toner also contains heavy metals such as lead and cadmium in addition to the actual pigment. This toner dust is not transferred completely to the paper so that residual toner may become distributed throughout the entire room. Toner can also escape when replacing a nearly empty toner cartridge with a full one. In this case, the fine toner dust, which is hazardous to health, can be breathed in and deposited in the lungs. In addition, some devices release ozone when operated. Modern devices are equipped with filters, however, that reduce the amount of ozone emitted.

Central printers, copiers, and all-in-one devices are often used and accessed by a large group of users. These devices often operate at high capacity. Although the noise generated during the operation of modern devices will not cause hearing damage, it is rarely possible to work efficiently anywhere near the device. This applies especially to devices located next to workstations and not placed in separate rooms.