I’ve been meaning to post the next tip for a while now, intending it to be promoting the use of fluorescent light bulbs, given their tremendous energy efficiency (compared to incandescent light bulbs).  The question arises though, do the benefits outweigh the risks?  The problem with fluorescent bulbs is their mercury content, mercury of course being poisonous, even in small doses.  If you break a bulb in your home, the EPA-recommended clean-up procedure looks like something that should be posted in an industrial chemical lab.  Still though, it can be dealt with, and I’d say the benefit still outweighs the individual risk.

Where the real problem comes is with mass disposal.  Fluorescent bulbs are supposed to be disposed of at approved recycling facilities, but we have to be realistic here – the reality is that most of these bulbs are going to end up in the trash, and thus in our landfills.  With all of these bulbs ending up busted up in our landfills, it creates a huge pollution hazard potential, in both our air and our groundwater.  With sales of these things numbering in the hundreds of millions per year now, this could turn out to be real problem in a few years.

So what to do?  Hard to say…  Many say the huge energy savings still outweighs the poison risk, but once these small risks add up, it could turn into a huge issue.  Hopefully industry finds away to reduce or eliminate that mercury content, or at least provide an easy-to-use recycling system that will encourage even the laziest of us to properly recycle them instead of throwing them in the garbage.  As mentioned in the article I link to below, GE is supposedly on the brink of releasing an incandescent bulb that rivals the efficiency of the fluorescent bulb, so maybe there lies our answer.  Time will tell….

Here is the link to the full source article:  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23694819/

Here are the EPA tips for cleaning up a broken fluorescent bulb, as referenced in the source article:

How to clean up a fluorescent bulb

Before cleanup: Vent the room 1. Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more. 2. Shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system, if you have one. Cleanup steps for hard surfaces 3. Carefully scoop up glass fragments and powder using stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. 4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. 5. Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes and place them in the glass jar or plastic bag. 6. Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces. Cleanup steps for carpeting or rug 3. Carefully pick up glass fragments and place them in a glass jar with metal lid (such as a canning jar) or in a sealed plastic bag. 4. Use sticky tape, such as duct tape, to pick up any remaining small glass fragments and powder. 5. If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken. 6. Remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister), and put the bag or vacuum debris in a sealed plastic bag. Disposal of cleanup materials 7. Immediately place all cleanup materials outside the building in a trash container or outdoor protected area for the next normal trash. 8. Wash your hands after disposing of the jars or plastic bags containing cleanup materials. 9. Check with your local or state government about disposal requirements in your specific area. Some states prohibit such trash disposal and require that broken and unbroken lamps be taken to a recycling center. Future cleaning of carpeting or rug 10. For at least the next few times you vacuum, shut off the central forced-air heating/air conditioning system and open a window prior to vacuuming. 11. Keep the central heating/air conditioning system shut off and the window open for at least 15 minutes after vacuuming is completed.

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency