Last year a customer asked us to mail out Compact Florescent light bulbs (CFL’s). We thought it was a great idea and after preparing the mailing our driver delivered it to the Post Office. And then the phone rang. It was the Postal Service calling. “This mailing contains hazardous material”. But it’s a light bulb, we tried to explain.
In fact, CFL’s do contain a small amount of mercury, a substance that the Postal Service prohibits from the mail stream in most circumstances. There is no doubt that mercury is prohibited for a good reason. It is incredibly harmful, especially for children. But we were not trying to mail a gallon of mercury; it was just a light bulb.
After much negotiation and documentation that we obtained from the light bulb manufacture, the CFL’s were on their way. But the incident taught us a couple of important lessons:
1) If you are going to mail a CFL, use UPS or FedEx
2) Recycle your CFL’s.
CFL’s are great. They reduce your energy bills and cut emissions of greenhouse gases. But when we throw CFL’s in the trash, they break and mercury is released into our environment. Recycling them is easy:
- In the Denver Metro area you can recycle your CFL’s at any Ace Hardware store
- Home Depot stores nationwide also collect CFL’s for recycle
- Most hazardous waste collection sites will accept your CFL’s
If none of these are options for you, contact your local energy or waste disposal company to find out how to recycle CFL’s in your area
