Environmental Issues With CFLs

It is an established fact that CFLs consume less than 75% of the electricity of normal incandescent lamps. In a world where electricity generation is increasingly becoming expensive due to rising fuel costs, the savings brought by CFL use cannot be understated. Moreover, the positive environmental impact of less electricity use, in terms of lower carbon emissions, is a boon for the survival of the planet. Yet, CFLs are not without their own set of effects on the environment. Some of the environmental issues related to CFLs have been discussed below.

1. Mercury

Each CFL bulb contains about 5 mg of Mercury vapour. This vapour is essential for the generation of UV light that will in turn cause the phosphor layer to fluoresce, thereby producing visible light. Without mercury, there would be no light. Hence, mercury is an essential component of the CFL. However, mercury is also a heavy metal that is toxic. When released into the environment, mercury can combine with other compounds to form neurotoxins (e.g. methylmercury). These contaminate lakes and rivers and tend to accumulate in wildlife (fish and animals). Some of the potential health effects of mercury exposure include:

• Mercury poisoning—effects arising immediately after exposure to elemental mercury (e.g. mercury vapour) include tremors, emotional changes, neuromuscular changes (atrophy, twitching), headaches, disturbances in sensations…etc. At high exposures, there may be kidney damage and respiratory failure and death.
• Cancer—some studies have linked mercury exposure to increase in tumor size in rats. No studies have been conducted on humans.

However, no mercury is released from CFLs when they are intact or in use. Mercury vapor will only be released if the bulb is broken. If a bulb breaks, then the following procedure should be followed to minimize health risks:

• Evacuate the room (both people and pets); avoid contact with the breakage area.
• Air out the room (open the window for about 15 minutes)
  c. If there is a central AC or heating system, turn it off to avoid mercury vapour spreading to the entire home.
• Collect broken pieces of glass and powder using a cardboard and place them in a glass jar or sealed plastic bag.
  e. Use sticky tape to collect the small fragments. Does not use vacuum unless the contaminated material is present on rugs or carpets.
• If clothes are contaminated with mercury, throw them away. Do not wash as mercury may then be released into the sewers.
• All cleaning materials should be put in a trash container for disposal.

2. Recycling and Management of Burnt CFLs

Even though a CFL contains only a very small amount of mercury, they collectively form an important environmental threat. If you throw away a burnt lamp in the trash, it will go to an incineration facility. This will result in toxic mercury being released into the atmosphere. It is therefore essential to bring burnt lamps to specialized recycling facilities before they break. These will recover the mercury and other components for reuse.