How much mercury is in the new energy-saving light bulbs, is it bad for our environment to be in our landfills

Question

I saw a special on tv that it is a hazard if you to break one.

I am talking about the small spiral flourescent lightbulbs they will eventually burn out and im wonderinng burnt out or not if it is broken either at home or in a landfill is it a hazard. And if so why don't they mark it on the package or tell people about it?

Answer 1

Our environmental group has been researching this topic and has been attempting to create public awareness as well...so it is good to see that other people are asking questions too.

Most sites list Compact Fluorescent Light's (CFL's) as having between 0.02g and 0.05g of mercury per tube. Whereas High Intensity Discharge Lights (HID's) like those found in schools and offices (mercury vapor, Metal Halide, etc...) can contain up to 0.25 to 0.5 g of mercury per light.

They are absolutely bad for the environment when disposed of in a landfill because they can contaminate the groundwater. Case in point, our local landfill in Peoria, Illinois is placed directly over the largest underground aquifer in the area...and between the leaching of mercury from the dump added to pollution from our many power plants...it is now unsafe to eat any fish from any body of water within an ever growing radius of the landfill. Thanks to the EPA for grandfathering in the landfill.

Answer 2

NO

They reduce the electricity consumption. Electricity generation relies heavily on coal. So if you have to produce less electricity, you burn less coal.
So what´s the relation with Mercury?
Mercury is emitted in large quantities as a result of coal being burned in coal power plants. Using less energy reduces Mercury emissions on a plant basis. This reduction is higher than the increased mercury due to the light bulbs.

And if most people give their used bulbs for recycling, most Mercury will not be released and the effect will even be better

Answer 3

Yes it's a hazard, but theres only a few miligrams of mercury (not much) i hear. If they die (never happened to mine so far) just wrap them in newspaper and put them in a separate can ie not in the regular trashcan

Have you thought about old recharging batteries that wont recharge, or a small electronic gadget? These contain lead, mercury or other bad stuff too, same story there, dont trash.

Just put these things in a bucket in your garage, labeled Haz Mat, and bring this to a hazmat colletion event (there's a few per year in my town)

Answer 4

in case you're conversing approximately those spiral gentle bulbs then this could help you decrease than stand,the guy benefit of this bulb is that it makes use of much less potential than a time-honored bulb. evaluate the wattage's on your old gentle bulb to the spirals wattage.this enables you via having a decrease power bill,additionally if it dose no longer ruin you like could desire to save changing that bulb each and every few months.this help the ecosystem having much less gentle bulbs thrown away and much less potential is mandatory out of your close by potential plant. I no longer for particular that it is genuine yet i heard that some people pays you to grant them a lifeless spiral bulb

Answer 5

Last I checked they said you should only be concerned if you are throwing away lights in bulk mostly talking about the larger flourescents like possibly the 4 foot ones you have in your kitchen.
But mercury is mercury isnt it.

Answer 6

wow actually learned some thing new mercury in light bulbs and land fills that's scary worth looking into those heavy metals are forever get on it kids just say no to stupidity