|
Compact Fluorescent Lights Dumping Mercury Directly into Landfills
E. Huff
Natural
News
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010
Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs have become all the rage
over the past several years, touted by many as the preferable
"green" way to light a home, save energy, and promote
environmental responsibility. While they may use less energy
than traditional incandescent bulbs, CFL bulbs are filled with
toxic mercury that, when disposed of, contaminates landfills
and the environment.
A report released in 2008 from the Maine Department of Environmental
Protection revealed that when a CFL bulb is broken, it can release
dangerously high levels of mercury into the air. Mercury-vapor
standards generally allow for 300 nanograms of mercury per cubic
meter of air, however a broken CFL bulb can emit upwards of
50,000 nanograms per cubic meter, or more than 166 times the
safe upper threshold.
In Toronto, city officials require people to dispose of CFL
bulbs at special hazardous waste facilities because they don't
want the city's landfills to become contaminated with mercury.
While used CFL bulbs are not legally recognized as hazardous
waste, they are treated as such because they pose serious environmental
threats when broken and released into the environment.
Waste runoff and ground seepage from landfills can contaminate
rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs, and underground water tables.
Even though landfills are generally designed to minimize this
kind of contamination, the rapidly growing usage of CFL bulbs
could have disastrous environmental consequences if they are
not disposed of properly.
CFL bulbs also emit high levels of radiation, causing migraine
headaches, sleep abnormalities, fatigue, and other health problems.
Unlike traditional incandescent bulbs, CFL bulbs emit excessive
"dirty energy," or electromagnetic frequencies (EMFs),
a fact that has received little attention from those on the
mainstream "green" bandwagon who continue to endorse
CFLs as the solution to the alleged climate change crisis.
The voltage reduction technology in CFL bulbs causes high amounts
of EMF pollution to be emitted. Similar to the kind released
from mobile phone antennas and food irradiation machinery, EMF
radiation poses serious health threats to humans who are exposed
to excessive amounts of it. CFL bulbs have been found to greatly
increase EMF exposure as they are often the most significant
EMF polluters in homes that use them.
Light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs, on the other hand, are a
much safer alternative to CFL bulbs. Those who wish to transition
from traditional incandescent bulbs to something that uses less
energy would do well to investigate LED alternatives. Although
they are typically more expensive than the other technologies
due to limited acceptance in the mainstream, they are better
for the environment than CFLs and emit far less EMF pollution.
Sources for this story include: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/fix...
http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/s...
http://cflsafety.blogspot.com/
"When the people find they can vote themselves
money, that will herald the end of the republic."
- Fall Of The Republic - Buy
the DVD here
|
INFOWARS:
BECAUSE THERE'S A WAR ON FOR YOUR MIND
|
|
