Spent Fluorescent and Mercury Vapor Lamps

Spent fluorescent lamps, as well as mercury vapor lamps, contain sufficient mercury to qualify as toxic hazardous wastes under Section 66699 (b) of the California Code of Regulations (CCR). At present, a generator may dispose of no more than 25 spent fluorescent light tubes and/or mercury vapor lamps at a time, regardless of size. The EPA, too, has concluded that fluorescent lamps can in sufficient quantities be considered hazardous waste under 40 CFR 261.24 (Quicksilver 1989). 

Mercury arcs are employed in these lamps because of the spectral distribution they emit, and because mercury vapor is relatively inert. It does not attack either the glass or the electrode materials (Kirk 1982). This contributes to the long lifetimes of mercury lamps. Low pressure mercury lamps are commonly called fluorescent lamps. High pressure mercury lamps are used in industrial environments and for street lighting and floodlighting. Other applications for mercury vapor lamps include motion-picture projection, photography, and heat therapy. 

Generators who are disposing of their burned out fluorescent lamps as municipal waste could be in violation of regulations, and could be incurring a liability as well. Even if a lighting service company removes the spent fluorescent tubes, the generator could still be liable if the service company doesn t dispose of them properly. 

One strategy for avoiding these problems is to use the services of a mercury recycler such as Quicksilver Products, Inc. of Brisbane, CA This company is an EPA licensed handler of mercury wastes that is able to extract the mercury from fluorescent tubes and mercury vapor lamps, as well as from batteries, switches, thermometers, contaminated soil, and other sources. 

Othmer, D.F., and Grayson, M. 1982. Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. Third Edition. John Wiley Sons, New York. Volume 15, pp. 154-155, and Volume 17, pp. 545-548. 

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