I agree important to understand, and LEDs are a great alternative, with cost being the significant factor. This Snopes article mentions the Maine DEP story:
http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/cfl.asp The EPA factsheet at the end of the article has some ³science² regarding the quantity of mercury associated with a couple different household items. It also mentions how much mercury is released into the air by a power plant (undefined) generating electricity. This is an interesting aspect I hadn¹t considered before. P. Phil Schneider, system engineer Creative Energies From: Carl Emerson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Reply-To: RE-wrenches <[email protected]> Date: Wed, 10 Dec 2008 08:58:12 +1300 To: 'RE-wrenches' <[email protected]> Subject: [RE-wrenches] CFL lighting and the mercury hazzard. Hi there, We have for years been advocating the use of energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Lighting (CFL) to reduce loads and reduce system cost. A recent study by DEP in Maine has raised the alarm about mercury poisoning form these bulbs. If there is a breakage the resulting levels of mercury on the floor of the house are well above acceptable limits. Secondly there seems to be little serious effort to safely recycle these bulbs in a manner that keeps the mercury out of the eco system. I understand that LED lamps are mercury free. This would seem to be a much safer alternative. While many of us have mercury amalgams in our mouth the mercury is supposedly in a form that is not significantly ingested, whereas the mercury in a CFL is in vapour form when hot and powder form when cold, and therefore can pose a hazard to health. Can I suggest some discussion on this and can we do our best to keep it scientific, I don¹t mean to spread emotional alarm without due cause. Thanks, Carl Emerson Free Power Ltd. Auckland N.Z. _______________________________________________ List sponsored by Home Power magazine List Address: [email protected] Options & settings: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/options.cgi/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List-Archive: http://lists.re-wrenches.org/pipermail/re-wrenches-re-wrenches.org List rules & etiquette: www.re-wrenches.org/etiquette.htm Check out participant bios: www.members.re-wrenches.org
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