Currently, using CFLs is still the brightest idea out there, both for energy cost savings and to mitigate climate change," said Michael Bender, director of the Mercury Policy Project. "Yet both government agencies and the manufacturers have a responsibility to inform consumers about what to do -- and what not to do -- when a CFL breaks. Our message is not 'Be afraid,' it's 'Be informed, and be prepared.'"

     My home is filled with Compact Fluorescent Lightbulbs, CFLs. They take some getting used to, but I like my power bill since we’ve been using these little toxic bombshells. I wish I could tell you my light bill was cut in half or some great news like that, but that would be a serious exaggeration. My bill does stay below $100 a month more often than not, and that is a change from years past with teenagers running the power bill out of sight. Yes, CFLs make a definite difference in my light bill, and I would highly recommend them.
     Now here comes the Department of Environmental Protection with a whole list of new do-s and don’t-s for handling CFLs. Big deal. I’ll pay attention. I’ll probably take some precaution when and if we should break a bulb. I would imagine when one broke last year, we simply tossed it into the trash. Who knew anything then? If one broke today, I would probably double-bag the waste as some websites have suggested. I might even look for a local recycler for “proper disposal.” It is also recommended to save the waste and wait for a household hazardous waste day in your area. Afterall there is less mercury in those bulbs than in some dental fillings. It’s the accumulation of many households and many bulbs in the waste stream that we need to be think about. So now there is a recommended disposal plan to protect us and the environment.
     What did we ever do before we knew fluorescent bulbs contained mercury? Oh, some of you did. Congratulations. Then you certainly knew to open a window when you dropped one of those big fluorescent tubes? You replaced your carpet if pieces of a broken bulb landed on it, and you always kept pregnant women and children away from these bulbs. No wait a minute, we use them in schools and hospitals…and they never break?
     So why the big panic with the news that the DEP has released guidelines on disposal of the compact version? Isn’t that what they are supposed to do…protect us? Yes, I know they can be a bigger pain than they appear to be worth some times, but in this case…it’s our “be informed, be prepared” moment.
     It’s another case of new technology, new information and changing times. Technology has allowed us to develop a better light bulb. The light can be brighter, cleaner and less expensive. It saves energy and protects the environment from mercury emissions in power plants, so now we have to continue that protection with proper disposal of individual bulbs. That doesn’t seem like a monumental task, but it does seem to be something a few people want to stress about. I think I have more important things to worry about.

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Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved.