Banning Mercury Products

Recently, Canada’s federal government announced it will pass a law to ban many products that contain mercury, including thermometers. However, Canada’s federal government already banned the incandescent light bulb in favor of CFLs, which contain mercury. One of the few products to escape the new mercury ban is CFL light bulbs. To ban mercury in most products while legislating every home in Canada must use mercury-laden CFL’s might make some consumers question their lighting choice.

Although CFLs contain small quantities of mercury—which can cause environmental, safety and health consequences—incandescent bulbs actually result in more mercury pollution. While incandescents do not contain mercury, they still contribute to its release into the environment. Because burning coal to generate electricity releases mercury into the air and incandescent bulbs use more electricity over their lifetimes, they are responsible for more energy consumption and ultimately more mercury emissions than CFLs.

The switch from an incandescent bulb to a more efficient CFL results not only in energy and cost savings, but also in less overall mercury pollution. However, CFLs and other mercury-containing lamps emit mercury vapor when broken, and most shipping packages currently in use do not contain this vapor. They need to be properly stored and transported to recycling facilities in packaging proven to contain mercury vapor emissions. Only then do CFLs result in a truly green lighting solution. Currently, only one package design, which includes a vapor resistant and zip seal bag, has proven effective in containing mercury vapor.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

The Mercury Debate: Is the CFL Bulb the Right Choice?

The 2007 energy conservation measure passed by Congress set standards to essentially ban incandescent lights by 2013, requiring households to make the switch to more energy efficient lights. However, many consumers are raising the question, whether or not CFLs and fluorescent bulbs are really the more efficient lighting choice. Due to their mercury content, many consumers are wary about placing them in their homes.

However, incandescent bulbs actually result in more mercury pollution than fluorescents. Because mercury is a byproduct of burning coal, coal-fired power plants are one of the largest sources of mercury pollution. Because incandescent bulbs use several times more electricity over their lifetimes, they require far more power generation and, ultimately, result in more mercury emission than fluorescents. With the coming “maximal achievable technology” clean air standards, it is fully expected that mercury emissions will have to be severely reduced in order to stop this proliferation. Fluorescent lights are four to six times more efficient than incandescent lamps, significantly reducing the power demand from local utilities. The reduced demand for electricity in turn reduces both greenhouse gas and mercury emissions.

Furthermore, consumers can safely use energy efficient bulbs if they are properly handled and disposed of when broken or burned out. Learn how to safely clean up a broken bulb or safely package a used bulb to send to a recycling facility.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

EPA Packaging Regulations

Shipping, packaging, and handling of fluorescent lamps is a major concern because of the harmful mercury vapor emitted when the lamps are broken, which commonly occurs during shipment. To lessen the health and environmental risks associated with mercury vapor, national laws--sometimes supplemented by more rigorous state laws--exist to encourage proper recycling of fluorescent lamps. EPA encourages recycling of these lamps by allowing common carrier shipment to recycling facilities. To protect people who handle fluorescent lamps, EPA instructs that packaging should be designed to protect against breakage. While the rules mandate that lamps be packaged in structurally sound packages, the federal laws don't explicitly address mercury vapor release.

Read more about State Universal Waste Regulations and Federal Universal Waste Regulations

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

State and Federal Packaging Rules and Regulations

Federal regulations do not currently mandate the use of packaging designed to prevent the loss of mercury vapor. However, this may not continue to be the case. As the awareness of the dangers of mercury vapor increases, so have the federal and state rules that regulate its disposal.

In 1999, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) established environmental and transportation regulations, including packaging requirements for fluorescent lamps. They require lamps to be managed in containers designed to prevent breakage. However, they do not require the container to be designed to prevent the loss of mercury vapor. In 2005, the EPA added a requirement mandating that packaging be designed to prevent mercury from escaping into the environment.

The state of Washington recently signed Senate Bill 5543, making this state the first to address the dangers of unsafe packaging and transportation of used fluorescent lamps, as well as other mercury containing devices. Due to the ineffective nature of most packaging configurations utilized for shipping used fluorescent lamps, the new law mandates that these devices are packaged and shipped in material that will minimize the release of mercury into the environment. The law additionally requires packages to include mercury vapor barrier materials if lamps are transported by the United States postal service, a common carrier, or collected via curbside programs and mail-back businesses. Washington has set the precursor for additional states to follow. Read more about additional state regulations regarding safe packaging of used fluorescent lamps.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

Waste Management Curbside Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) Recycling Program Allows Communities to Responsibly Dispose of Used Fluorescent Bulbs

Waste Management, Inc., North America’s largest residential recycler, recently launched a new recycling program that allows communities to recycle used CFLs in a safe, environmentally responsible manner. The curbside CFL recycling program is currently offered in four communities: Rolling Hills Estates, CA; Melbourne, FL; Palm Bay City, FL; and Brevard County, FL, with future plans to implement the service in communities across the country where Waste Management residential recycling services are provided. Residents will receive a specially designed Mercury VaporLok® container that can safely store up to 12 standard CFLs. When the bag is full, residents can call Waste Management to collect the container through their current curbside pickup service. Waste Management can customize this service based on the needs of each community to ensure the program is intuitive and effective.

This new curbside CFL recycling service compliments Waste Management’s ongoing universal waste recycling programs. WM LampTracker®, a division of Waste Management, also provides total-care solutions for the storage, handling, transport and recycling of fluorescent lamps for small, medium and large-scale businesses across North America.

For those communities that do not have Waste Management residential recycling services, residents can recycle their CFLs through Waste Management’s ThinkGreenFromHome.com, which provides consumers with a convenient option to recycle their household universal waste directly from their home with confidence it will be handled safely and responsibly.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

Minimize Safety, Health and Environmental Risks of Used Fluorescent Lamps: Breakage

The fact is, fluorescent lamps are fragile, and along their life cycle from manufacture to disposal—some product will inevitably break. A proven packaging configuration with a zip closure foil-plastic laminate bag is available to effectively contain mercury vapor, allowing safe transportation and storage to recycling facilities and mitigating the danger of mercury vapor exposure. However, if a lamp is broken outside of these containers—during handling and maintenance for instance—the proper steps should be taken to minimize exposure.

The EPA provides guidelines for cleaning up a broken fluorescent light, including a CFL or fluorescent bulb. First, the facility’s maintenance personnel should empty the room of people and pets, airing the area out for 15 minutes or more. The glass fragments should then be carefully picked up (with stiff paper or cardboard) and placed in a glass jar with a metal lid. Remaining fragments should be removed by the use of sticky tape, but a vacuum and/or broom should not be used. For additional information and a more complete clean-up guide, visit the EPA’s website.

Read our previous posts in this series on how to handle, store, transport and recycle used fluorescent lamps.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC

Minimize Safety, Health and Environmental Risks of Used Fluorescent Lamps: Recycling

Despite the safety, health and environmental hazards of used fluorescent lamps, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates recycling rates at only 20 to 25 percent. According to one study, mercury air emissions could be lowered by 30 percent if recycling rates are increased to 50 percent and improvements in handling are made to lower losses from breakage. (1) Consumers can choose to recycle used lamps in several different ways. Lamps can be sent to a recycling facility via truck, UPS or FedEx® in bulk or through pre-paid shipping recycling box programs—which provide simple online ordering, tracking and compliance documentation for the proper management of mercury-containing items and other types of Universal Waste.

Once received, the recycler may crush the lamps, along with other contaminated products, devices and debris, to safely exhaust the mercury vapor and extract and reuse the resultant mercury—ensuring mercury is not released into the environment. This process minimizes the potential dangers of mercury vapor emitted from used fluorescent lamps—effectively reducing environmental liability and protecting both handlers and consumers from potential safety hazards and health risks.

Read our previous posts in this series on how to handle, store and transport used fluorescent lamps, and find out next week what do if the bulb breaks.

Reference:
1. 3. Cain, A.; Disch, S.; Twaroski, C.; Reindl, J.; Case, C.R. Substance Flow
Analysis of Mercury Intentionally Used in Products in the United States; J. Ind. Ecol. 2007, 11, 61-75.

Brad Buscher
Chairman and CEO
VaporLok Products LLC