Did you know that low energy light bulbs can be considered hazardous waste and should be handled with caution? Although they are not immediately dangerous, all fluorescent lighting contains tiny amounts of mercury and so when they reached the end of their life or get broken they should not be put in your general rubbish for disposal.
If you do need to get rid of a low energy light bulb or the long fluorescent tubes then you should take them to the Councils Household Recycling Centre instead.
The good news is that mercury within the bulbs can be safely recovered and the glass gets recycled. They can't go in the normal glass recycling though because they're Phosphor coated glass, so please don’t place them in bottle banks or your kerbside glass recycling box. Its also reassuring to know that the tiny amounts of mercury used in these lamps is much less that the amount of mercury which gets pumped out by coal fired power stations every year!
So low energy lightbulbs are an environmentally friendly solution they use less power, they save you money, they reduce mercury in the environment overall and they can be recycled, a win, win, win, win!
There is a special area set aside for these lamps, look our for the signage or ask the site attendants if you are unsure or need help, they are always very helpful there.
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