More and more people are moving over to energy saving light bulbs, but not many of us think about light bulb recycling, whether we use traditional or energy saving bulbs. Light bulb recycling is important, however, with tens of millions of bulbs sent to landfill every year. Even energy saving light bulbs don’t last forever and need to be disposed of carefully.
One of the documented disadvantages of energy saving bulbs as well as standard fluorescent lights is that they contain mercury, which can be harmful to the environment if allowed to leach into the ground. It has always been difficult to recycle light bulbs of all varieties, however, due to the fact that they contain components made of different materials. For this reason, they are not collected by local authorities, making it more difficult for consumers to arrange for them to be recycled.
Light bulb recycling is possible, however, and there are more companies springing up which can take them and recycle them, even in the case of fluorescent and energy saving bulbs. The components of the bulbs are separated, the mercury removed, and the materials recycled. For example, the glass can be used for glass wool insulation and the mercury for scientific instruments. Check with your local authority to find out about any companies offering light bulb recycling in your area, or search the web or telephone directory.
For alternative ways of recycling light bulbs, the How Can I Recycle This? website has some interesting suggestions!
