We don't use the sense of proportion here anymore. We have signs in California self-service gas stations that tell us that known carcinogens are lurking everywhere! Imagine if I were to spill a milliliter of PCB; with the ability to detect PPB, it would set off alarms in Oregon. As for averaging over my household, let's not tell anybody about that pint of mercury that I have been saving for some time when I feel like sticking my thumb in it again.
Ed Price El Cajon, CA USA -----Original Message----- From: John Woodgate [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Friday, August 24, 2012 11:07 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: [PSES] Light Bulb provokquium In message <[email protected]>, dated Fri, 24 Aug 2012, Ed Price <[email protected]> writes: >I have never understood just what you are supposed to do if you >accidently break one of these CFL's. What happens (to those with >exquisitely refined senses of environmental responsibility) now that >you have created a small toxic waste hazard? Will you have to report >this to a potential buyer of your home? Do you have to turn yourself in >to the EPA? There is about 3 milligrams of mercury in a CFL, or less. A barely visible little drop. There is a similar amount in a straight fluorescent tube, and no-one panics about them. In the rest of your house, there is probably up to ten times as much, especially if you have coal from some mines. A sense of proportion is necessary. Zinc, cadmium and mercury form a chemical family. Zinc you can buy at the health-food store. Cadmium kills you if you look at it, while mercury runs after you to kill you. -- OOO - Own Opinions Only. Try www.jmwa.demon.co.uk and www.isce.org.uk Instead of saying that the government is doing too little, too late or too much, too early, say they've got is exactly right, thus throwing them into total confusion. John Woodgate, J M Woodgate and Associates, Rayleigh, Essex UK - ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at: http://www.ieee-pses.org/emc-pstc.html Attachments are not permitted but the IEEE PSES Online Communities site at http://product-compliance.oc.ieee.org/ can be used for graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher: <[email protected]> David Heald: <[email protected]> - ---------------------------------------------------------------- This message is from the IEEE Product Safety Engineering Society emc-pstc discussion list. To post a message to the list, send your e-mail to <[email protected]> All emc-pstc postings are archived and searchable on the web at: http://www.ieee-pses.org/emc-pstc.html Attachments are not permitted but the IEEE PSES Online Communities site at http://product-compliance.oc.ieee.org/ can be used for graphics (in well-used formats), large files, etc. Website: http://www.ieee-pses.org/ Instructions: http://listserv.ieee.org/request/user-guide.html List rules: http://www.ieee-pses.org/listrules.html For help, send mail to the list administrators: Scott Douglas <[email protected]> Mike Cantwell <[email protected]> For policy questions, send mail to: Jim Bacher: <[email protected]> David Heald: <[email protected]>
