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Mercury Disposal Project Under Way, 50 Disposal Centres To Be Set Up Across Country

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Posted on Tue Aug 07, 2007 at 01:52:49 AM EST

Rising Concerns over mercury pollution, caused by exposure to broken compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs), has now forced the government to focus its attention on their safe disposal. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), along with the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), has decided to set up 50 facilities across the country where fused CFLs can be disposed of and the mercury present inside the bulbs safely recovered. The first such facility will become operational in a year's time.

FALLOUT OF EXPOSURE TO MERCURY

Elemental (metallic) mercury can be hazardous in vapour form. It can be absorbed through the lungs. These exposures can occur when elemental mercury is spilled or products that contain elemental mercury break and expose mercury to the air.

Symptoms

Impaired neurological development
Tremors
Emotional changes (such as mood swings,

irritability, nervousness, excessive shyness)

Insomnia
Neuromuscular changes (such as weakness, muscle

atrophy, twitching)

Headaches
Disturbances in sensory perception (pins and

needles feeling)

Changes in nerve responses
Lowered mental function
High and longer levels of exposure can cause kidney failure, respiratory failure and death.
Foetal exposure impairs the child's memory, attention, language, and fine motor and visual spatial skills

Impact on health can be gauged from the following factors

Chemical form of mercury (methylmercury is more toxic than elemental mercury)

Quantity of mercury
Age of the person exposed to mercury (the foetus is the most susceptible, followed by infants and children)

Duration

Route of exposure - inhalation, ingestion or skin contact
Health of person at time of exposure

According to environmental experts, though CFLs are highly recommended because of their energy efficiency, there is a need for their safe disposal to avoid health hazards caused by exposure to mercury Hindustan Times was the first to highlight the health hazards caused by CFLs.

"As part of the Bachat Lamp Yojana (BLY) scheme recently announced by the Centre, BEE along with MoEF will set up about 50 facilities across the country where fused CFLs can be disposed. We are working out the modalities for setting up the first such facility We also involve private entrepreneurs in the project," said Dr Ajay Mathur Director General, BEE.

Under the BLY scheme, manufacturers will provide energy efficient CFLs at a cost of Rs 15 per bulb. The manufacturers, who are part of the scheme, will also be required to buy back used CFLs for
Rs.2 and then take it to a disposal facility The entire BLY project we be funded through carbon credits that the government will earn by reducing carbon emission through CFL usage. BEE officials said every kilowatt-hour of electricity that is used emits 0.75 kg carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

The money the government would earn will be given to the manufacturers to recover the cost they incur by selling CFLs to households at a price equivalent to that of a normal incandescent bulb.

According to estimates made by BEE, there is a market for about 400 million CFLs in the country Though this will help cut down 24 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, it would also mean a huge mercury load. "There has to be a system in place for organised disposal of used CFLs," said Mathur

Till date, 100 million CFLs have been sold in the country Each such bulb contains around five milligram of mercury According to figures released by NGO Greenpeace, approximately 12.5 crore CFL bulbs are being used in Delhi. The mercury content in these lamps is about 500 kg.

Source-Hindustan Times, 06 Aug 2007

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