CFL Recycling
Note: This information is available for download as a PDF here.
Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs use far less energy than standard incadescent light bulbs, thus saving you money and energy. However, CFLs contain a slight amount of mercury and must be recycled.
When recycled properly, approximately 95% of the mercury can be recovered, so please help us keep this mercury out of the environment by recycling your used bulbs!
The Good
Energy Star CFLs use up to 75% less energy and can last up to 10 times longer than incandescent light bulbs, which helps the environment as well as your pocket book.
If every home in America replaced just one incandescent light bulb with an ENERGY STAR qualified CFL, in one year it would save enough energy to light more than 3 million homes and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those of more than 800,000 cars. Butte Environmental Council 116 W. 2nd Street, Ste. 3 Chico, CA 95928 (530) 891-6424 www.becnet.org
--- Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
How should I clean up a broken fluorescent bulb?
The following steps can be performed by the general public:
- Open a window and leave the room for 15 minutes or more.
- Carefully scoop up the fragments and powder with stiff paper or cardboard and place them in a sealed plastic bag.
- Use disposable rubber gloves, if available (i.e., do not use bare hands).
- Wipe the area clean with damp paper towels or disposable wet wipes and place them in the plastic bag.
- Do not use a vacuum or broom to clean up the broken bulb on hard surfaces.
- Place all cleanup materials in a second sealed plastic bag.
- Place the first bag in a second sealed plastic bag and take it to a local recycling center.
- Wash your hands after disposing of the bag.
- If a fluorescent bulb breaks on a rug or carpet:
- First, remove all materials you can without using a vacuum cleaner, following the steps above.
- Sticky tape (such as duct tape) can be used to pick up small pieces and powder.
- If vacuuming is needed after all visible materials are removed, vacuum the area where the bulb was broken, remove the vacuum bag (or empty and wipe the canister) and put thebag or vacuum debris in two sealed plastic bags and take it to the local recycling facility.
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The Bad
CFLs contain mercury, which is a potent neurotoxin, and the mercury is released into the air as soon as a CFL is broken. Although there is a lot less mercury in one CFL than in a dental filling, mercury is something you don’t want to take into your system if you can avoid it. It can be even more harmful to children and pets (due to their higher respiration rates) than it is for adults, so get them out of the room quickly when a bulb breaks.
One CFL contains a hundred times less mercury than is found in a single dental amalgam filling or old-style glass thermometer, according to the U.S. EPA.
Although CFLs do contain mercury, the use of CFLs does help reduce mercury emissions from power plants by reducing power demand, which more than offsets the amount of mercury in the bulbs.
The Recyclable
Since CFLs contain trace amounts of mercury, they cannot be thrown in the trash, and must be recycled. There are several places in Butte County to recycle your used CFLs. BEC is currently working with several other organizations, companies, and agencies to expand the list of CFL drop-off locations to make itmore convenient for the you, the consumer, to recycle your CFLs. According to a Vermont-based Mercury Policy Project director, upto 95 percent of the mercury contained in CFLs can be recovered if the bulbs are recycled properly.
Hints
Take Care When Changing Bulbs: Handle CFLs with care. Do not force the bulb if it does not screw easily into the socket. Use both hands when changing the bulbs so that there is less chance of dropping the bulb (especially when the socket is on or near the ceiling).
Cut Out Steps: Cut out the steps in the sidebar and tape it to your box of new/used CFLS, put it on the refrigerator, or put it somwhere where the whole family can find it quickly.
Save the Box: Put your burned-out CFL bulbs back in the box (if you still have new bulbs, mark the burned-out bulb with a permanent marker) and keep until you can bring it to a recycling center.
| Location |
Address |
Hours of Operation |
Phone |
| Chico |
| NRC Environmental Services Household Hazardous Waste Facility |
1101 Maurader St.
Chico |
Friday 9:00 am to 1:00 pm Saturday 9:00 am to 4:00 pm |
1 (866) 429-2288 |
| Home Depot |
2580 Notre Dame Blvd.
Chico |
Monday - Saturday, 6:00 am - 9:00 pm
Sunday, 7:00 am - 8:00 pm |
342-0477 |
| Orchard Supply Hardware (OSH) |
231 W. East Ave.
Chico |
Monday - Saturday, 7:00 am - 9:00 pm
Sunday, 8:00 am - 8:00 pm |
332-9226 |
| Park Village True Value |
1646 Park Ave.
Chico |
Monday - Saturday, 8:00 am - 6:00 pm
Sunday ,9:00 am - 4:00 pm |
342-1138 |
| Gridley |
| Applied Computer Technologies |
850 Hazel Ave
Gridley |
Monday - Friday, 9:00 am - 5:00 pm |
846-2289 |
| Oroville |
| Better Deal Exchange Ace Hardware |
1845 Mitchell Ave.
Oroville |
Monday - Friday, 7:30 am - 6:30 pm
Saturday, 8:00am - 5:00 pm
Sunday, 9:00am - 4:00 pm |
533-5600 |
| Norcal Waste Systems |
2720 S. 5th Ave.
Oroville |
1st & 3rd Fridays of each month
9:00 am - 2:00 pm |
533-5868 or 342-4444 |
| Butte County Fire Station #64 Kelly Ridge |
22 Walnut Dr.
Oroville |
Saturday, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm |
|
| Home Depot |
2150 3rd Street
Oroville |
Monday - Saturday, 7:00 am - 9:00 pm
Sunday, 8:00 am - 7:00 pm |
538-0521 |
| Paradise |
| Neal Road Landfill |
1023 Neal Road
Paradise |
Every day, 7:00 am - 4:00 pm
(closed some holidays) |
879-3252 |
| Northern Recycling & Waste Services www.NorthernRecycling.biz |
920 American Way
Paradise |
10:00 am - 2:00 pm on a rotating schedule (either on Wed. or Saturday) |
876-3340 |
| Thomas Ace Hardware |
5720 Clark Rd.
Paradise |
Monday - Friday, 7:00 am - 7:00 pm
Saturday, 7:00am - 6:00 pm
Sunday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm |
877-4442 |
