Compact flourescent bulbs contain toxic mercury

By KATHY TOON
Guest Columnist

Did you know, there is toxic mercury gas in the new compact flourescent bulbs? Many of us may have been taught to be careful about the long tubular flourescent bulbs, but there is something we all need to be made more aware of: the mercury gas inside the CFL’s (compact florescent lamps- the swirly ones) is highly toxic as well.
If a bulb breaks, do not use anything you want to keep in your household to clean it up with, such as your broom, dustpan, or vacuum cleaner.
Don’t use your bare hands. Use disposable gloves, a paper plate or newspaper, and very carefully scoop everything up and place it in a plastic zip lock bag. Wipe up
with paper towels and put them in the bag. Seal everything you used into
the bag, including the gloves, and take it to a toxic waste recycling facility.
Home Depot accepts broken CFL’s.
Never toss broken or even intact burned out CFL’s into the trash. When they break or get crushed they will expose the workers to high levels of mercury.
Clearly, these precautions should be on the labeling of these bulbs, but it appears that while these bulbs are being forced on the public as an answer to environmental issues, the real dangers are being hidden from us.
There is rumor that within five years these dangerous bulbs will be outlawed and quietly replaced with LEDs (light emitting diodes), but what about the silence and the poisoning of the public, the landfills, and the trash workers in the meantime?
It appears to be the result of more greed on the part of the supposed environmentalist companies who simply want to make money and care nothing about public safety and our EPA turning a blind eye to the problem.
Surprise. Surprise. This is indeed a very real danger. Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin
even in very miniscule amounts. If you choose to use the CFL’s handle them carefully and dispose of them responsibly. Protect yourself, your waste removal workers, and your environment.
If you have time and inclination, contact your legislators. Maybe we can speed up the outlawing of these poor excuses for the safer incandescent bulb. Not only are CFL’s filled with toxic mercury gas, but they also vibrate at a very high speed which is perceptible to many people who get headaches, dizziness, and other symptoms from this form of lighting.
 

Editor’s note: One business in Evansville collects the bulbs for safe disposal. The Mount Vernon Democrat cannot promote a particular business on its editorial page, but we can say that it is a chain home improvement business. A quick call to those businesses can let you know which will accept your bulbs.