Mercury is not just a planet - it's a very hazardous heavy metal
It’s the thing that makes fluorescent lights work, including compact fluorescents (CFLs). Unfortunately for us, it’s also a health hazard.
Almost 98 per cent of all fluorescent lights are crushed into landfill. When you consider that Australians dump between 57 and 71 million lights a year, that’s a lot of mercury. In fact, that’s over 1,100 kg of mercury. It’s safe to say that fluorescent lights are the most significant source of mercury contamination of all the waste we produce.
When fluorescent lights are broken, the mercury they contain can vaporize. Inhaling even a small amount of this vapor can impact us in many ways – from harming our kidneys, to causing respiratory failure or even death (at high doses).
Almost 98 per cent of all fluorescent lights are crushed into landfill. When you consider that Australians dump between 57 and 71 million lights a year, that’s a lot of mercury. In fact, that’s over 1,100 kg of mercury. It’s safe to say that fluorescent lights are the most significant source of mercury contamination of all the waste we produce.
When fluorescent lights are broken, the mercury they contain can vaporize. Inhaling even a small amount of this vapor can impact us in many ways – from harming our kidneys, to causing respiratory failure or even death (at high doses).
What could be worse than Mercury?
It’s called Methylmercury and it is a highly toxic agent. In nature, methylmercury forms in aquatic systems when anaerobic organisms (organisms that don’t need oxygen) feed on it. Unfortunately, landfills often imitate the same conditions. The result can be concentrations of methylmercury in our environment up to 100 times the normal levels (as was the case with a landfill in Florida). That’s pretty toxic.
Methylmercury is a bioaccumulant, which basically means it builds up in our food chain, and it’s most commonly ingested by eating fish. Methylmercury is so dangerous; it can even impede the development of a child’s nervous system.
Methylmercury is a bioaccumulant, which basically means it builds up in our food chain, and it’s most commonly ingested by eating fish. Methylmercury is so dangerous; it can even impede the development of a child’s nervous system.
T8LED can help solve this probleM
Using LEDs to reduce the amount of energy we use, can help us significantly decrease the amount of methylmercury in the environment. That’s because methylmercury is also created when coal is combusted to generate electricity.
By recycling fluorescent lights however, we can reduce the amount of mercury in our environment even further. As the more inefficient incandescent lightbulbs are phased out and the use of LED increases, we’ll have to get smarter about the way we use them.
By recycling fluorescent lights however, we can reduce the amount of mercury in our environment even further. As the more inefficient incandescent lightbulbs are phased out and the use of LED increases, we’ll have to get smarter about the way we use them.
We Recycle all replaced tubes
Recycling New Zealand’s 71 million fluorescent lightbulbs would not only stop mercury from bleeding into our environment, it would also help us recover 13,000 tonnes of glass, 500 tonnes of aluminum, 400 tonnes of other metals and 300 tonnes of phosphor powder.