Compact

Greetings:

I received an email form Claudia about my recent post on being green. She writes

"A note about the compact bulbs they have mercury in them and I'm not sure we want landfills full of heavy metals. I think there will come a special disposal process for them however they are not the panacea they are made out to be at least not yet." Claudia

According to an article in Fast Company.Com, "Compact fluorescents emit the same light as classic incandescents but use 75% or 80% less electricity.

"What that means is that if every one of 110 million American households bought just one ice-cream-cone bulb, took it home, and screwed it in the place of an ordinary 60-watt bulb, the energy saved would be enough to power a city of 1.5 million people. One bulb swapped out, enough electricity saved to power all the homes in Delaware and Rhode Island. In terms of oil not burned, or greenhouse gases not exhausted into the atmosphere, one bulb is equivalent to taking 1.3 million cars off the roads."

That's the law of large numbers (I wrote a day about the concept of large numbers not too long ago)--a small action, multiplied by 110 million."

Another amazing thing about these light bulbs is "Compact fluorescents, even in heavy use, last 5, 7, 10 years. Years." That truly is amazing.

Up until now the Compact Fluorecents have been more of a novelty, but that is about to change, big time! "In the next 12 months, starting with a major push this month, Wal-Mart wants to sell every one of its regular customers--100 million in all--one swirl bulb. In the process, Wal-Mart wants to change energy consumption in the United States, and energy consciousness, too. It also aims to change its own reputation, to use swirls to make clear how seriously Wal-Mart takes its new positioning as an environmental activist."

According to Answers.com "However, CFLs contain trace amounts of mercury. The amount is not large enough to pose a hazard to users, but it does become a concern at landfills and trash incinerators where the mercury from many bulbs can escape and contribute to air and water pollution."

"Some manufacturers such as Philips make very low mercury content CFLs[2]. Safe disposal requires storing the bulbs unbroken until they can be processed. Consumers should seek advice from local authorities. Usually, one can either:

Bring back used CFLs to where they were purchased, so the store can recycle them correctly; or
Bring used CFLs to a local recycling facility.

The first step of processing involves crushing the bulbs in a machine that uses negative pressure ventilation and a mercury-absorbing filter or cold trap to contain and treat the contaminated gases. Many municipalities are purchasing such machines. The crushed glass and metal is stored in drums, ready for shipping to recycling factories."

Truly when you read what these light bulbs will save when it comes to energy it is truly amazing. However before I go out and buy a bunch of them I will be checking to see how they can safely be recycled.

Live the Day,

Rachelle

Resources:

How Many Light bulbs Does it Take to Change the World? One. And You're Looking At It. Charles Fishman. Issue 108. September 2006. Fast Company.com

Compact Fluorescent light bulb. Answers.com