SPECIAL FEATURE

Clearing the Air on CFLs
by PJ Newcomb, P²AD Technical Assistance Program Manager

CFLs (compact fluorescent light bulbs) have been the victim of some scary-sounding stories circulating by email, on the web, TV, and by word of mouth. P²AD has subsequently received inquiries as to whether CFLs pose an immanent threat to human health or if they are better for the environment. After all, they do contain the element mercury. The story is that a woman broke a CFL in her house, got some advice to have a hazardous waste company to come clean it up, and wound up paying thousands of dollars for the service. As it turns out, her reaction was more of an over-reaction due to some bad advice. But perceiving her family’s health at risk, who can blame her? As the father of a two year old and installer of many a CFL, I personally and professionally wanted to make sure I understood the issue clearly. While mercury exposure should not be taken lightly, here are the basics as I understand them:

• The fear is over-blown, and the woman in the stories/rumors over-reacted.
• The use of CFLs, on balance, actually lowers exposure to mercury.
• The use of CFLs saves considerable electricity, emissions, and money.

There are several resources for recycling CFLs:
For an incredibly good article on CFLs and mercury, including...

• Why you should use CFLs,
• How the mercury footprint compares to that of incandescent lightbulbs,
• What to do if you break a CFL,

please click here for an article from Energy Star, updated June 2008.

CFL Recycling Resources in Georgia:
For Businesses

• AERC, Macon
• Atlanta Light Bulbs, Tucker. 770-491-3586
• MKC Enterprises, Atlanta. 770-457-1341 (You MUST call first.)
• EnviroTech Environmental Services, Stockbridge. 770-506-8292. (You MUST call first.)
• SE Recycling Technologies, Kennesaw. 770-426-5000.
• Veolia Environmental Services, Morrow GA. Albert Williams, 404-361-6181 ext 250.
• Onyx Recycling, Tallahassee FL 32305. Gina Henery, 800-556-5267.

For Residential:

• Home Depot – any retail store – 1-800-553-3199
• IKEA: 441 16th Street, Atlanta, GA 30363. 404-745-4532. Compact bulbs only.

For more information:

• Energy Star’s general CFL information, including guidance on CFL selection. For more information, click here.
• Maine’s Department of Environmental Protection published a broken CFL clean-up guidance which provides a couple more tips than the Energy Star guidance. For more information, click here.