All Fluorescent Lamps and Tubes Should Be Recycled or Disposed as Hazardous Waste
All fluorescent lamps and tubes are considered hazardous waste in California when they are discarded because they contain mercury. (Title 22, division 4.5, chapter 11, section 66261.50) This includes:
Fluorescent lamps and tubes:
Fluorescent tubes, including low mercury tubes.
Compact fluorescents, including low mercury lamps.
High Intensity Discharge (HID) Lamps:
Metal halide lamps, such as floodlights for large indoor and outdoor areas and gymnasiums.
Sodium lamps, such as those sometimes used as security lighting and outdoor floodlights.
Mercury vapor lamps, such as those sometimes used for street lighting.
All fluorescent lamps and tubes must be recycled, or taken to a household hazardous waste disposal facility, a universal waste handler (e.g., storage facility or broker), or an authorized recycling facility. (Title 22, division 4.5, chapter 23, section 66273.8) (The law requiring that fluorescent lamps be recycled or taken to a household hazardous waste disposal facility, a universal waste handler, or an authorized recycling facility has been in effect since February 9, 2006.)
See a list of all wastes banned from the trash.
When mercury-containing lamps or tubes are placed in the trash and collected for disposal, the lamps or tubes are broken and mercury is released to the environment. Mercury vapors from broken lamps or tubes can be absorbed through the lungs into the bloodstream. People who are particularly close to the breakage are especially at risk. Mercury from broken lamps and tubes can also be washed by rain water into waterways.
According to a report entitled, Household Universal Waste Generation in California, August 2002, there were 15,555,556 fluorescent lamps sold in California in the year 2001. According to survey results published in the report, only 0.21% of these lamps were recycled.
How to Recycle or Safely Dispose Fluorescent Lamps and Tubes
Households and Small Business with Only Small Numbers of Spent Lamp or Tubes at a Time
Take lamps and tubes to a household hazardous waste collection center or event. Find where to recycle or dispose fluorescent lamps and tubes at Where Can I Recycle My…?, or Earth 911, or call 800 CLEAN-UP (253-2687). Enter your zip code to find the nearest recycling center. Includes information for many types of recyclable material, including household hazardous waste.
See the Web site of your local governmental household hazardous waste agency for the latest information in your area.
Businesses
Businesses now manage mercury-containing lamps and tubes as universal wastes for recycling. The recent universal waste regulations eliminate the hazardous waste manifest requirements and increase allowable storage time to one year.
Businesses can use prepaid mailing containers from lamp recyclers or contact a universal waste handler (e.g., storage facility, broker) or an authorized recycling facility.
Contact the DTSC office near you.
See the Web site of your local governmental household hazardous waste agency for the latest information in your area.
Do Not Break Fluorescent Lamps or Tubes
Package Fluorescent lamps and tubes carefully when storing and transporting them. Do not tape tubes together. Store and transport fluorescent lamps and tubes in the original box or another protective container. Store them in an area away from rain so that if they break, the mercury from broken lamps or tubes will not be washed by rain water into waterways. (See How to Clean Up Broken Lamps or Tubes, below.)
Approximately 370 pounds of mercury were released in California in the year 2000 due to the breakage of electric lamps and tubes during storage and transportation 1. It is estimated that nearly 75 million waste fluorescent lamps and tubes are generated annually in California. These lamps and tubes contain more than a half a ton of mercury. The mercury in urban storm water sediment results in part from improperly discarded fluorescent lamps and tubes.2
Note: Operating a fluorescent lamp/tube crusher in California would be considered hazardous waste treatment. Operating a fluorescent lamp crusher in California would require a “standardized permit” from the Department of Toxic Substances Control. Contact the DTSC office near you for more information on standardized treatment permits before you invest in a fluorescent lamp crusher.