CFL Already causes a DEP Clean-up

[Marcel R. Cyr]

I wonder how many more incidents like this will happen within the next few Months?

Read full artical here;
http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=55213


ENVIRONETDAILY
Consumers in dark over risks of new light bulbs
Push for energy-saving fluorescents ignores mercury disposal hazards

Posted: April 16, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern



By Joseph Farah
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com


Brandy Bridges of Prospect, Maine, shows a newspaper insert promoting the type of CFL (compact fluorescent [COLOR=blue! important][COLOR=blue! important]lamp[/COLOR][/COLOR]) bulbs she says have caused elevated levels of mercury in her home upon breaking (photo courtesy: Ellison American)
WASHINGTON – Brandy Bridges heard the claims of government officials, environmentalists and retailers like Wal-Mart all pushing the idea of replacing incandescent light bulbs with energy-saving and money-saving compact fluorescent lamps.
So, last month, the Prospect, Maine, resident went out and bought two dozen CFLs and began installing them in her home. One broke. A month later, her daughter's bedroom remains sealed off with plastic like the site of a hazardous materials accident, while Bridges works on a way to pay off a $2,000 estimate by a company specializing in environmentally sound cleanups of the mercury inside the bulb.
With everyone from Al Gore to Wal-Mart to the Environmental Protection Agency promoting CFLs as the greatest thing since, well, the light bulb, consumers have been left in the dark about a problem they will all face eventually – how to get rid of the darn things when they burn out or, worse yet, break.
CFLs are all the rage. They are the spirally shaped, long-lasting bulbs everyone is being urged, cajoled and guilt-tripped into purchasing to replace Thomas Edison's incandescents, which are being compared to sports utility vehicles for their impracticality and energy inefficiency. However, there is no problem disposing of incandescents when their life is over. You can throw them in the trash can and they won't hurt the garbage collector. They won't leech deadly compounds into the air or water. They won't kill people working in the landfills.
Marcel

[Michael Larson]

Hi, I'm from the government and I'm am here to help you.

A phrase that scares me frankly.

Can anyone say - Law of unintended consequences?

[tdietrich1]

If we allowed the government to mandate what technology we had to use a century ago, we would be all still driving horse and buggies.

Why let them now?

tom

P.S. Before I get flamed, almost 100% of my non-dimmible circuits have CFL's. Can't find ones that work well in fridge, freezer, etc.

[Erby Crofutt]

More info on this here:

Did you play with Mercury in Grade School? by the Central Kentucky Home Inspector

The story was an overreaction from an uninformed state worker and the British version of our venerable National Enquirer.

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