Printing Conservation Progress
Thanks to the Print Conservation program, as well as the concerted efforts of our patrons to conserve paper, we are making great strides to help Rutgers cut down on the waste generated by unnecessary printing.

The following chart shows how much the PrintGreen program saved on New Brunswick campus during its first four years (Fiscal Year 2008 to FY2011: July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2011).

To see similar charts showing how much the PrintGreen prorgam has saved on the Camden campus during the past few years, even as enrollment has increased, please click here.

The Computer Labs in New Brunswick have saved over 55,300,000 sheets of paper during the first four years of the PrintGreen Conservation program (starting in the summer of 2007).

Before:
July 1, 2006 - June 30, 2007 : 31,255,000 sheets printed

After:
July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2008 : 21,983,132 sheets printed
July 1, 2008 - June 30, 2009 : 15,078,701 sheets printed
July 1, 2009 - June 30, 2010 : 15,950,562 sheets printed
July 1, 2010 - June 30, 2011 : 16,694,257 sheets printed

This savings is equivalent to about:

• 44% less paper, or
• 11,000 boxes of paper, or
• 4650 trees

Click here for more tips on how to conserve paper at the labs.

Printing Conservation
As of August 1, 2008, a new printing policy is in effect to help Rutgers cut down on the waste generated by unnecessary printing.

There will be no charge for the first $30 of printing that each individual person releases during every six month printing period (January-June; July-December). The rates for printing are as follows:

• $.04 per sheet for black and white printing
• $.25 per sheet for color printing*

Please note that $30 at no charge is equivalent to:

• 750 sheets in black and white, OR
• 120 sheets in color, OR
• any combination thereof*

Remember, single-sided and double-sided sheets have the same rates, so everyone is encouraged to always print double-sided, which is the default setting on most lab computers.

* In Camden, individuals are charged through their RU Express card for all color printouts -- i.e., color printouts are not part of the first $30 at no charge.

Check Print Usage
You can check how much you have printed here:

Check Print Usage

Based on past printing statistics, this serves the printing needs of most people, over 90% of whom print far fewer sheets than this.

Adding Funds
If you are one of the few individuals who need to go beyond $30 and are not a guest, you can still continue to print.

For individuals affiliated with Rutgers New Brunswick or Rutgers Camden, further charges would be deducted from your RU Express card. If you need to add funds to your card, you can do so here:

Add Funds

For individuals affiliated with Rutgers Newark, further charges would be deducted from your Raider Card. If you need to add funds to your Raider Card, individuals can visit the Raider Card Office, Paul Robeson Campus Center, Room 325, Monday - Friday, 8:30am - 4:30pm.

Raider Card Office

Why was Printing Conservation Implemented?
Prior to Print Conservation, the liberal printing policy had encouraged waste and contributed to the doubling of print copies.

That waste includes items such as the following:

• documents which printed incorrectly
• lost documents
• documents printed to the wrong printer
• incorrect versions of a document
• documents which printed in the incorrect orientation

This resulted in annual costs of nearly one-half million dollars for paper, toner and printer replacements. Without modifications to our policy, we anticipated that further increases in printer utilization would have led to resource reductions in general computing operations and diminished service in student campus computing facilities. It is our commitment to reduce printer waste by making patrons more aware of the global footprint even one sheet of paper has.

Additional information is available here.

Graduate Students & Special Programs
We acknowledge that some graduate programs require larger preparation work for their dissertations and theses, and others with selected special circumstances might need to exceed $30 of printing. OIT is collaborating closely with such programs, such as the Graduate School of New Brunswick, to accommodate their students and we are prepared to work with other offices as extraordinary needs arise.

Frequently Asked Questions
Please read our FAQ for answers to commonly asked questions about the printing software transition.

How To Conserve Paper
Paper conservation goes beyond simply printing in duplex mode. Other common examples of how to conserve paper in the labs include: printing multiple pages per side of a sheet, reducing margins, reducing font size, and even submitting assignments electronically.

Common examples of how to conserve paper at the labs can be located here.

Commitment to Our Patrons
OIT continues to look at ways to improve printing at the computing labs. Feel free to ask consultants at the labs for other ways you can save paper or to elaborate on the methods mentioned here.