TABLE OF CONTENTS

 
1               OVERVIEW
 
Mercury is a naturally occurring element of the earth. Increasingly, people have become familiar with the environmental and human health impacts associated with mercury and its compounds; however, many are not aware that mercury is an essential component of most energy-efficient lamps.  Fluorescent light bulbs (including compact fluorescent) and high intensity discharge (HID) lamps are the two most common types of mercury-containing lamps.  Fluorescent bulbs provide lighting to most schools, hospitals, office buildings and stores.  HID lamps include mercury vapor lamps, metal halide and high-pressure sodium lamps, and are used for streetlights, floodlights, parking lots, and industrial lighting.  Due to the mercury content, these lamps typically require special handling at end-of-life.
 
Nationwide, over 600 million mercury-containing lamps are discarded each year, yet the recycling rate is about 24%.  Most of these lamps are still discarded with municipal solid waste that is ultimately landfilled or incinerated.  The Association of Lighting and Mercury Recyclers (ALMR), the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), and the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) are working in collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to increase the national recycling rate through an outreach and education campaign.  In order to encourage better management of mercury from spent lamps, we are targeting outreach efforts towards the people who can best contribute to diverting these lamps from municipal solid waste landfills.  The objective is to get enough information to the right people so that both mandatory and voluntary recycling increases from the current rate of 24% to 40% by 2006 and 80% by 2009.  To achieve the objective, it is necessary to change people’s behavior; in other words, to increase compliance by changing the current disposal pattern for mercury-containing lamps into recycling.
 
Targeting Disposal Decision-Makers
 
In order to have a significant impact on the recycling rate, “disposal decision-makers” must be fully informed about the regulations regarding mercury-containing lamps, and the opportunities available for recycling them.  Disposal decision-makers have both the authority and responsibility to dispose of spent lamps in an environmentally safe manner that complies with legal requirements. Disposal decision-makers include building owners and managers of commercial, industrial, and government properties. Electrical contractors, lighting maintenance and demolition contractors, the solid waste industry, local governments, lighting specifiers, and partners of the EPA Energy Star and DOE Rebuild America programs also influence disposal decisions.
 
 
2       THE FEDERAL RULES
 
Used (also known as “spent”) mercury-containing lighting products are regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Universal Waste Rule (UWR)[1], which is a subset of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) Subtitle C hazardous waste regulations.  Most states have adopted these rules, and several have adopted regulations that are more stringent than the UWR.
 
The federal hazardous waste rules are a complex set of regulations affecting all aspects of waste management.  They are found in the Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR Parts 260-279).  The Universal Waste Rule is a subset of these regulations which streamlines the management of selected common hazardous waste products.  These products include batteries, certain pesticides, thermostats, and lamps.  In general, this rule prohibits spent lamp disposal in municipal landfills.  Anyone who chooses to recycle their lamps under universal waste regulations generally have reduced regulatory burden and costs.
 
If this is the option that you have chosen, it is important to know that there are certain requirements that you must adhere to.  Lamps that are sent for recycling under the Universal Waste Rule have less stringent requirements for storage, record keeping and transportation as compared to the requirements of the full Subtitle C hazardous waste regulations.  Regardless of how you choose to manage your waste, you must be thoroughly acquainted with both state and federal regulations in order to determine how they apply to you.  Please review the State-by-State Stringency Comparison Table.
 
RCRA and UWR Definitions (as they apply to lamps)
 
The following definitions are summaries of those found in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) as they apply to mercury-containing lamps.  Also cited are specific sections in the CFR where official definitions are found. 
 
Lamp or Universal Waste (UW) Lamp - The bulb or tube portion of an electric lighting device.  A lamp is specifically designed to produce radiant energy, most often in the ultraviolet, visible, and infrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum.  Examples of common universal waste electric lamps include, but are not limited to, fluorescent, high intensity discharge, neon, mercury vapor, high pressure sodium, and metal halide lamps. The lamp definition is found at (40 CFR 273.9).
 
All fluorescent lamps contain some amount of mercury.  Unless otherwise marked, these lamps will likely fail EPA’s Toxicity Characteristic Leaching Procedure (TCLP) for mercury, and unless exempted, they must be handled as a hazardous waste.  Depending on date of manufacture, some lamps that pass the TCLP test may be marked in green, either as an etch on the glass, or as a colored base.  In some circumstances these lamps may be handled as ordinary solid waste.  All mercury-containing lamps, whether hazardous or not, will release mercury into the environment when broken outside of a controlled recycling process.  EPA encourages recycling all mercury-containing lamps.
 
Universal Waste Handler or Handler – Generally speaking, anyone who produces, stores, collects, or accumulates universal waste, such as mercury-containing lamps, but does not treat, recycle, or dispose of them.
 
Small Quantity Handler of Universal Waste (SQHUW) - A generator (such as a business or building owner) or third party (such as a contractor) who accumulates less than 5,000 kg total of universal waste (such as spent mercury-containing lamps) at a time.  No EPA ID is required.  Storage time for the waste is up to one year.  Employees are required to have minimal training and information on proper handling and emergency procedures regarding mercury-containing lamps.  Proper marking and labeling of universal waste is required. SQHUW requirements are found at 40 CFR 273 Subpart B.
 
Large Quantity Handler of Universal Waste (LQHUW) - A generator (such as a business or building owner) or third party (such as a contractor) who accumulates more than 5,000 kg total of universal waste (such as mercury-containing lamps) at a time.  An EPA ID is required, and state registration may also be required. Storage time for the waste is up to one year.  Employees are required to have training and information on proper handling and emergency procedures regarding mercury-containing lamps. Proper marking and labeling of universal waste is required. LQHUW requirements are found at 40 CFR 273 Subpart C.
 
Universal Waste Transporter - One who engages in the process of transporting waste lamps for 10 days or less.  A transporter may not store, accumulate, dispose, dilute or treat universal waste lamps. No EPA ID is required. Proper marking and labeling of waste lamps is required. Transporter requirements are found at 40 CFR 273 Subpart D.
 
Universal Waste Transfer Facility - A non-permitted storage location for 10 days or less.  The transfer facility definition can be found at 40 CFR 273.9.  If storage exceeds 10 days, “Handler” status applies.
 
Destination Facility - A state or federally-permitted processing, recycling or disposal facility.  A destination facility is subject to requirements similar to a “Treatment, Storage, and Disposal Facility (TSDF),” permitting requirements, Land Disposal Restrictions (LDR), and other provisions under Subtitle C (40 CFR 273 Subpart E).
 
For more definitions and commonly used terms see the glossary.

3       SUMMARY OF THE UNIVERSAL WASTE RULE AND RCRA SUBTITLE C HAZARDOUS WASTE REGULATIONS FOR BUSINESSES

Who does this rule apply to?
 
·      Federal RCRA requirements apply to everyone except households and Conditionally Exempt Small Quantity Generators (CESQGs) – see glossary for definition of  “CESQGs.”
 
·      Although households and CESQGs may legally dispose of waste lamps in the trash unless state policies are more stringent (and many are), EPA encourages them to recycle their lamps as well.  See the State-by-State Stringency Comparison Table.
 
Where can the waste go?
 
·      In most cases, hazardous waste lamps must go to a destination facility or TSDF (only lamps from households or CESQGs are exempt) rather than to a municipal solid waste landfill. These facilities include lamp recyclers or mercury recyclers.  Recycling waste lamps under the UWR is less burdensome because most businesses will not have to register with the EPA to obtain an EPA ID.
 
How does using the UWR to recycle simplify disposal?
 
·      If you choose to dispose of lamps under the more stringent full Subtitle C hazardous waste requirements, the following applies:  you must obtain an EPA ID, a HW manifest is required for transportation, and a certified HW hauler must be used for transportation. This option could greatly increase administrative, shipping and disposal costs.
 
·      If you recycle lamps under the UWR, you are exempt from the HW manifest requirements.  The UWR allows the use of a record of shipment like a bill of lading (BOL).  It does not require the analytical testing or reporting of lamps destined for recycling. 
 
·      If you recycle lamps under the UWR, you may use a common carrier instead of a certified HW hauler for shipment to a recycling facility. This lowers shipping costs.
 
·      Intentional lamp breakage is considered “treatment,” and treatment of lamps (e.g., drum-top crushing) requires compliance with full Subtitle C requirements unless your state has authorized regulations allowing lamps to be crushed under the UWR.  See the State-by-State Stringency Comparison Table.  Also see the Crushing section of this document.
 
·      If you recycle lamps under the UWR, you may collect lamps without a permit. The UWR also allows handlers such as businesses and building owners to store lamps in any amount up to one year.
 
·      If you recycle lamps under the UWR, there are minimal training requirements for employees.  The labeling requirements for this waste are also less burdensome.
 
4       LAMP LABELING
 
NEMA members have implemented a nationwide labeling program for mercury-containing fluorescent and HID lamps, and their packaging, to ensure that consumers receive consistent and clear information on the proper disposal of spent lamps with each product they purchase.
 
The lamp package includes the following information, with the toll-free number being manufacturer-specific:

Until recently, regulations made it difficult and expensive to recycle used lamps.  Now the EPA has included mercury-containing lamps in the Universal Waste Rule, a federal regulation that reduces the cost and regulatory burden of recycling.
 
5       BREAKAGE
 
Lamps are fragile and can easily break.  The regulations distinguish between accidental breakage that occurs during normal transport and intentional breakage or crushing.  (See Crushing in the next section of this document.) While there is no specific amount of breakage that is considered accidental, less than 5% is generally acceptable.  Anyone who chooses to recycle lamps under the UWR should take standard precautions to minimize breakage, such as using the boxes from new lamps to store old ones in.  More specific guidance on this is available from recyclers.
 
EPA provides the following breakage advisory:

6       CRUSHING
 
General Overview of Crushing
 
Crushing is the intentional breaking of fluorescent and mercury lamps for the purpose of volume reduction.  Crushing reduces the physical volume of lamps but does not recover any mercury. In order for lamps to be managed under the Universal Waste Rule, “treatment” by handlers or transporters is not allowed. Under federal regulations, crushing is considered a type of treatment.  Generally, anyone who “treats” their lamp waste is not considered a “handler” under the UWR and is subject to full Subtitle C hazardous waste requirements.  This includes manifesting and reporting compliance items that add costs to shipping lamps. Crushing is not recycling, but it can be a step in the treatment process when the crushed material is further treated by a recycling process that includes retorting.  Under no circumstances can the crushed lamps be landfilled as municipal solid waste.  Certain authorized state programs allow both whole and intentionally crushed lamps to be managed under the UWR.  Handlers that choose to intentionally crush lamps must do so in accordance with authorized state programs. For more information specific to your state, consult the State-by-State Stringency Comparison Table.
 
What is Drum-Top Crushing?
 
Drum-top crushing is done using a mechanical device that fits on top of a 55-gallon collection drum.  Whole lamps are broken in the system but components are not separated, and the drum will contain hazardous mercury, phosphor powder, glass and mixed metals.  Crushing lamps into drums releases mercury into the filter.  This filter medium also becomes hazardous.
 
National Crushing Study
 
At this point, intentional crushing is controversial.  There are no clear national guidelines, accountability or health and safety monitoring requirements.  EPA has embarked on a study to determine what the national minimum standards should be.  The ALMR cooperated with EPA in developing standards to eliminate any abuses of the rules.  Until this is complete, we simply urge caution and suggest people check with their state agencies.
 
7       MERCURY LAMPS AND WATER ISSUES
 
In the context of “The Safe Drinking Water Act” and “The Clean Water Act,” along with their enacting regulations, there may also be environmental concerns about water quality from the discharge of mercury from broken lamps.  While there is no significant research in this area, preliminary evidence suggests that mercury from spent lamps may impact water quality when they are broken in solid waste containers where rainfall leaks out.  No one knows how many containers there are, how many will have tops open when it is raining or exactly how many lamps will break in any container, but we do know that there are still over 500 million mercury-containing lamps per year put into some type of solid waste container and managed as municipal solid waste.
 
At some point all of these lamps break.  Most breakage occurs in the container, as opposed to at the landfill, simply because glass is so fragile.  When these containers are also exposed to moisture from rain or other sources and they leak, or when they are washed out, mercury can enter the environment.  Studies have shown that when fluorescent lamps break in containers the mercury can hover for days, and eventually migrate downwind and back onto the land.  Indirectly, this mercury can also get into water.
 
We know that this is a source of mercury pollution that can easily be controlled when recycling is chosen. For a more complete and technical discussion of the relationships between mercury from lamps and water regulatory standards see the Mercury section at www.almr.org.
 
8       STATE REGULATIONS AND PROGRAMS
 
In the last few years most states have added lamps to their local regulatory policies to make it easier to recycle and keep mercury out of landfills, incinerators and the environment. State policies differ and local requirements should be checked, but fundamentally all governmental policies now encourage recycling at authorized facilities.  Please review the State-by-State Stringency Comparison Table.

9      RECYCLER SELECTION CRITERIA
 
It is incumbent upon you to select a recycling contractor that will best serve your needs while at the same time give you the assurance that your waste lamps are properly managed to minimize your liabilities.  To assist, we have provided some general criteria for selecting your recycler:
 
Pricing - Pricing represents the recyclers’ ability to service you and your customers and meet your needs, while at the same time being price competitive.  While pricing is key, as with many things, you usually get what you pay for.  It is suggested that you question pricing and get more than one quote for your needs.
 
Service - Important items include responsiveness, timeliness, program flexibility and customization, the personnel you will be working with, whether there will be intermediates, the capabilities of the firm and the equipment they will be using.
 
Risk Management - Recyclers, as Destination Facilities, are obligated to reduce or eliminate pollution risks for their clients.  In order to remove the mercury characteristic from the waste, recyclers must comply with numerous federal and state regulations.  Important factors for evaluating recyclers include:  1) whether they meet insurance requirements for general and pollution liability, 2) the financial health of the company, 3) what indemnities or other assurances they offer clients, 4) their environmental record and compliance history, 5) the existence of government permits and approvals for facility operation or transportation, 6) operations and safety procedures and records, 7) vapor control technology and monitoring records, 8) hygiene and medical surveillance information, 9) the status of a facility closure plan, 10) facility audit reports, and 11) the availability of key regulatory contacts.
 
These items may seem extensive and your evaluation may seem daunting, but you are entrusting your hazardous waste to a third party and you need assurances.  You are encouraged to ask potential recycling contractors about any of these items.  It is perfectly acceptable to ask for references or to check with the state agency that regulates recycling facilities for compliance histories.
 
10     ABOUT THE LAMP RECYCLING OUTREACH PROJECT

“Lamp Recycling.  The Responsible Thing to Do” was chosen by ALMR (in conjunction with NEMA and SWANA) as the slogan for the Mercury Lamp Recycling Outreach Project.  This is a national outreach and education campaign that was funded in 2002 by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

About ALMR

The Association of Lighting and Mercury Recyclers is a non-profit organization representing members of the lighting and mercury recycling industry, and serving as an educational and informational resource to government, business and the public.  ALMR began in 1999 and its members currently recycle about 80% of the mercury lamps that are diverted from the municipal waste stream.
 
About NEMA
 
NEMA, the National Electrical Manufacturers Association, is the leading trade association in the United States representing electronic product manufacturers.  Founded in 1926 and headquartered near Washington, D.C., its 400 member companies manufacture products used in all walks of life, including the generation, transmission and distribution, control, and end-use of electricity.  Annual shipments of these products total in excess of $100 billion.
 
About SWANA
 
For 40 years, SWANA, The Solid Waste Association of North America, has been the leading professional association in the solid waste industry.  SWANA’s mission is, “to advance the practice of environmentally and economically sound management of municipal solid waste.”  SWANA serves over 6,800 members, and thousands more solid waste professionals with technical conferences, certifications, publications and a large offering of technical training courses.
 
Please visit:
 
www.lamprecycle.org or contact NEMA at www.nema.org for additional information and resource directories of services available.
 
www.almr.org or contact the Association of Lighting and Mercury Recyclers (mail@almr.org) for more information on how to set up a lamp recycling program.
 
www.swana.org or contact SWANA for more information on how the solid waste industry is diverting waste lamps into recycling.
 
www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/id/univwast/lamp.htm or contact the U.S. EPA for more information on the Universal Waste Rule.
 
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[1] The Universal Waste Rule (UWR) (40 CFR Part 273) See Federal Register July 6, 1999, Volume 64 Number 128, pp 36465-36490.  You are encouraged to visit www.lamprecycle.org for general information and EPA’s links related to the regulations.