Amy in NH Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Associated Press NH halts recycling of bulbs containing mercury By LYNNE TUOHY , 06.20.11, 03:52 PM EDT CONCORD, N.H. -- New Hampshire's program to recycle mercury-laced low-energy light bulbs is going dark due to budget cuts. Funding runs out this month for a five-year-old program that allows residents to recycle long fluorescent light bulbs and compact fluorescent light bulbs at participating hardware stores. Article Controls Some municipal landfills accept the bulbs for recycle but many, including Manchester's, do not. The only two commercial recycling centers in the state are located on the seacoast and consumers would have to drive there and pay a quarter or more, per bulb, to recycle them. "It's a real problem," says Paul Lockwood, pollution prevention supervisor for the state Department of Environmental Services. "It's against the law to put them in the garbage, so what do consumers do with them?" Lockwood estimates that New Hampshire consumers generate 2.6 million spent CFLs and fluorescent light bars per year, containing a total of six pounds of mercury. The national Environmental Defense Fund says that one-seventh of a teaspoon of mercury can contaminate a 20-acre lake, making its fish inedible. Mercury can cause brain damage and pose other health risks to humans. "When a lamp is broken, its mercury vaporizes," he said. "If it's broken in a Dumpster, it's released into the immediate environment," he said. If it gets into a landfill, it gets into the ground water. If it's incinerated, it ends up as an air emission." DES officials say municipal leaders need to seize the recycling reins and make citizens aware that careless disposal of the bulbs is hazardous to humans and the environment. Even with the hardware store recycling program in place, only about 12 percent of bulbs bought by New Hampshire residents were recycled, said Dean Robinson, household hazardous waste program manager for DES. About 43 True Value and Ace stores were participating in the program when the state put them on notice several months ago that it would be ending. True Value stores were the first to begin accepting spent bulbs in 2006, followed by Ace hardware stores in 2008. Between them, the stores had collected a total of 25,983 CFLs and 393,754 linear feet of straight fluorescent lamps through April 2011. Chuck Aubin, co-owner of the Ace-affiliated Aubin Hardware in Manchester, said his store used to take in quite a few bulbs each week, enough to require weekly recycling trips. He said they made no money off the program, but participated for the convenience of their customers. Aside from driving burned out bulbs to the recycling centers in Portsmouth and Dover, residents whose landfills don't take the fluorescent bulbs can bring them to their town's hazardous waste collection event. Lockwood said those typically are held just once a year. The cost of the program from its outset was just under $40,000 for all five years, Lockwood said. The funding was provided by a company leasing a dam on the Connecticut River ( CRCA.OB - news - people ) where heavy concentrations of mercury were found, but that agreement has ended. Lockwood said the state planned to pick up the cost but now can't afford it. Lockwood said careless disposal of spent bulbs affects the environment in numerous ways and will erode years of progress. "If DOT stops fixing potholes, you see the results right away," Lockwood said. "If state police cut patrols, you see results right away. Cut funding for the environment and you don't see the results as quickly. That's our fear. Programs that took 20 years to have a measurable environmental impact will stop, and we'll be where we were 20 years ago." Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plink Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 Seriously??? Our leaders are all morons. Okay, maybe that's too extreme, but don't they see the disaster coming? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 (edited) I do so enjoy the part where local governments need to put forth effort to make people understand just how important recycling is... :001_huh: I agree with LibertyH's assessment. I often wonder if people hear themselves when they speak (or type or whatever). Eta: I guess I should be glad for the hazmat disposal days... Here, the closest recycling is 90odd miles away and you have to be a resident of the county. (luckily, my ILs are, so we keep them in a box for when we go over there) Recycling them at hazmat collection days is explicitly prohibited. Eata: this is one of the reasons we are switching to LEDs, one $30-40 bulb at a time. Sigh. Edited June 21, 2011 by MyCrazyHouse Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SailorMom Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 The whole issue is so ridiculous. We need to save electricity - so let's poison everyone. Yeah - brilliant. I have a bag in my house that we put those bulbs in, but as on now, we still have no where to recycle them here that I have ever found. The bag just keeps getting more and more full.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perry Posted June 21, 2011 Share Posted June 21, 2011 The whole issue is so ridiculous.We need to save electricity - so let's poison everyone. Yeah - brilliant. I have a bag in my house that we put those bulbs in, but as on now, we still have no where to recycle them here that I have ever found. The bag just keeps getting more and more full.... Do you have a Home Depot? You can recycle them at any Home Depot store. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 Do you have a Home Depot? You can recycle them at any Home Depot store. I imagine that here in NH Home Depot would be one of the hardware store that will no longer be accepting them... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted June 22, 2011 Author Share Posted June 22, 2011 One of the things that really kills me about this is the phase-out of regular incandescents mandated by the goverment!~ Can't buy regular lightbulbs, can't dispose of CFLs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 It's idiotic to produce those bulbs to begin with. I would guess 80% of the population just dumps them in the trash anyway. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom4him Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Well, when I discovered what they really are I unscrewed every one of them and took them all back to Wal-Mart. That is where I had purchased them. They refunded me my money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teamturner Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 I keep waiting for them to get rid of the stupid law outlawing incandescent. I hate cool lighting and I really want my incandescent bulbs. (stomping foot!) :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted June 22, 2011 Share Posted June 22, 2011 Well, when I discovered what they really are I unscrewed every one of them and took them all back to Wal-Mart. That is where I had purchased them. They refunded me my money. My brother has been trying to convert us for years but I have remained adamantly opposed. My hubby brought one home once and I busted out bawling. He returned it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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