Detroit Free Press: CFL mercury isn’t a concern
Filed under: Earth 911 - June 6, 2007
June 5, 2007
BY SUSAN AGER
FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER
“Any mercury is too much mercury.”
So said reader Terry Fraser in response to a column I wrote about CFLs (compact fluorescent lightbulbs) displacing Thomas Edison’s old incandescents. CFLs are so wildly more efficient that nations like Australia and Canada are banning Edison’s bulb, steering consumers toward CFLs.
But yes, CFLs contain mercury, an amount equal to the period at the end of this sentence.
Other items containing mercury that Fraser might avoid are glass thermometers (which contain at least 100 times as much), home thermostats (which may contain 600 times as much), certain dental fillings and fish including shark, swordfish and tuna.
CFL-phobics also might want to hold their breath: Coal-fired plants emit five times as much mercury into the air to keep an incandescent bulb burning as to keep a CFL lit.
The hazmat hoax
True, lightbulbs occasionally break. But no, despite a widespread rumor, it will not cost you $2,000 to clean up a CFL.
That story started in April after a Maine newspaper described a woman who got a $2,000 estimate from a hazmat cleanup company after a CFL broke in her daughter’s room.
It took me most of a day to find out the truth: She got bum advice over the phone. And while a test showed a high level of mercury at the spot where the bulb broke, other tests show mercury dissipates fast, especially if a window is opened.
Turns out she picked up the pieces, taped off the bedroom (under renovation anyway) and waited a month before allowing a state waste management guy to pull up a square of carpet — which tested free of mercury — and carry it away.
She spent not a dime. Nor should anyone else.
“The risk is miniscule,” said Susan Smolinske, director of the Poison Control Center at Children’s Hospital in Detroit. “The dose is the poison, and while it’s best to minimize exposure to mercury, being a reasonable and practical person, it’s probably no more than you’d get from a tuna fish sandwich.”
She, like every other health and toxicology expert I spoke with, has many CFLs in her home, without worry. EPA cleanup guidelines (epa.gov/mercury/spills) warn against vacuuming a broken bulb (which increases the fumes) and urge ventilation, but they’re super-conservative because, well, mercury isn’t good for you. Break lots of CFLs, put your nose in the debris right away and, if you’re pregnant or under 6, you might be in trouble.
I wonder about CFL-phobics: Do they drive? Or eat PopTarts? Or spray chemicals on their lawns?
CFL drawbacks
Readers also complained CFLs give off poor light and aren’t dimmable. As demand increases, options do, too. My Home Depot sells CFLs that cast all kinds of light. Some are dimmable. Some are shaped like incandescents, so you can clip a shade to them.
Finally, disposal.
Like pesticides, paints, oven cleaners, tile cleaners, motor oil and batteries, fluorescent bulbs shouldn’t be tossed in the trash. It’s easy to recycle hazardous household wastes. Check with your county, check earth911.org or call 800-253-2687.
Then relax.
Contact SUSAN AGER at 313-222-6862 or sager@freepress.com.
One Response to “Detroit Free Press: CFL mercury isn’t a concern”
wow
its very unconventional point of view.
Nice post.
realy gj
thank you