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TRANSCRIPT: CCF light globes carry dangerous toxins

July 2, 2008

Incandecent and Compact Fluro

 

Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Broadcast: 01/07/2008

Reporter: Thea Dikeos

The push to phase out power hungry light bulbs is underway across the country. But now there’s growing fears about energy efficient globes which contain mercury, a dangerous toxin.

Transcript

KERRY O’BRIEN, PRESENTER: While both sides of politics are gearing up for a long and bruising debate about an emissions trading scheme for Australia, at least they’re not arguing about the replacement of power hungry light bulbs with more energy efficient globes.

The move was introduced by Malcolm Turnbull as John Howard’s environment minister. And the Rudd Government has actually accelerated the introduction.

The phase out will now be completed in the next two years. But there’s a downside.

These energy efficient globes contain mercury, a dangerous toxin that affects the nervous system.

The way things work now is the new globes wear out and are discarded, they’ll end up in their million in the garbage tip, contaminating landfill.

Green groups are calling on the Government to introduce a national recycling scheme by the end of year. but they fear that the Government is not listening.

Thea Dikeos reports.

THEA DIKEOS, REPORTER: It’s been lighting Australian home s for over a hundred years, but here and across the world, the incandescent globe is going out for good.

MALCOLM TURNBULL, FORMER ENVIRONMENT MINSTER (February 2007): By 2015, when the incandescent light-bulb will only be found in a museum. It will mean Australia is emitting 4 million tonnes less of carbon dioxide than it otherwise would.

THEA DIKEOS: Last year then environment minister Malcolm Turnbull introduces the phase-in of the energy efficient compact fluorescent globe, or CFL.

The longer-lasting CFL globe uses 70 per cent less electricity, offering a substantial cut in green house gas emissions.

After the election of the Rudd Government, new Environment Minister Peter Garrett enthusiastically embraced the new globe.

PETER GARRETT, ENVIRONMENT MINISTER: We’re going to bring forward by 12 months the phase-put of inefficient incandescent light-bulbs.

THEA DIKEOS: While consumers might feel good about using less electricity and reducing greenhouse gases, few would be aware that they contain one of the world’s most toxic substances, mercury.

It’s not surprising as most packs don’t contain any warnings.

JOHN BUCKERIDGE, NATUAL RESOURCES ENGINEER: It’s a neuro-toxin, and what it does is it disrupts the ends of the neurons, our nerve system, and prevents them functioning effectively. So our nerves simply breakdown, disintegrate.

THEA DIKEOS: Guidelines posted on the Department of Environment’s website say that if one of these globes breaks nearby windows and doors should be opened to ventilate the room.

But the biggest fear is how to dispose of the globes once their life is over.

JOHN BUCKERIDGE: One of these globes by itself is probably not a major issue. It’s when they are collected and dumped on mass. When we’re talking thousands, hundreds of thousands into a landfill, that’s when we have the problems.

THEA DIKEOS: According to John Buckeridge, a natural resources engineer, and head of Engineering at Melbourne’s RMIT, dumping mercury into landfill actually makes it more dangerous.

JOHN BUCKERIDGE: Under these conditions we can have certain types of bacteria growing, which is able to change mercury into hits diethyl mercury and it happens in landfills. And that, that material, when it’s produced is extremely toxic.

THEA DIKEOS: Lighting containing mercury is banned from landfill in the countries of the European Union, Taiwan, Japan, and New Zealand. That’s not the case in Australia.

JEFF ANGEL, TOTAL ENVIRONMENT CENTRE: Certainly products with toxic contaminants should be banned from landfill. That’s the safe, the environmentally responsible thing to do.

BRYAN DOUGLAS, LIGHTING COUNCI LOF AUSTRALIA: The jury is still out on the effects on mercury in landfill. Not just from lamps but from other sources.

And I might add that the source of mercury from lamps is very small compared to the total mercury in our environment.

And even if mercury going to landfill so we would not advocate an immediate ban on lamps going to landfill.

THEA DIKEOS: This view is reiterated in a summary of a draft report into mercury by the Federal Department of Environment and Water which says some of the mercury from waste may also be sequestered in landfill long term.

But it concedes that more research is required into the impact of mercury sources in Australia and advocates and education campaign about the safe handling and disposal of CFL lamps for the general public.

JOHN BUCKERIDGE: I would not want them going in my backyard. That’s perhaps the simplest answer for you. You know if you said well if they’re that damn safe put them in your back garden, dig a hole there and bury them that would be crazy.

THEA DIKEOS: The manufacturers say their green globes in fact reduce the total amount of mercury into the atmosphere.

BRYAN DOUGLAS: Burning coal to produce energy releases mercury into the atmosphere so the mercury environmental foot print from CFL’s is actually smaller than it is for incandescent lamps because they are so much more energy efficient.

THEA DIKEOS: Australia’s only mercury recycling plant is in Campbellfield in Victoria. Each day thousands of fluorescent lights are broken up. The glass and aluminium are recycled and the mercury distilled.

DALE ROBBINS, CMA ECOCYCLE: There’s potentially 10 million CFL’s to be recycled each year. That’s a number that we’ve projected and believe that it may in fact increase.

THEA DIKEOS: But at the moment collection of household lighting waste for recycling at the Victorian plant is limited to a small number of councils around the country.

RECEPTIONSIST, SUTHERLAND COUNICL: Hello, can I help you?

MEMBER OF PUBLIC: I’d just like to recycle the globes.

RECEPTIONSIST: Certainly, pop them in box at the end of the counter.

THEA DIKEOS: Sutherland Shire council in Sydney’s south has four collection boxes in community centres and also at the council headquarters.

JANELLE BOOTH, WASTE MINIMISATION COORDINATOR: We expect it to cost about $4,000. We’ve only had the system in place for about six months to date and it’s really quite affordable. It’s about 5 cents per household.

THEA DIKEOS: State and Federal environment ministers have not looked at a plan for a national lighting recycling system despite the accelerated faze in of the green globes. Local government, which is at the frontline of waste management, is worried.

GENIA MCCAFFREY, NSW LOCAL GOVERNMENT: We are concerned that this could be a problem both for our council workers who are collecting the waste and clearly a problem once they’re in the landfill.

THEA DIKEOS: Councils are urging the manufacturers of the globes to take responsibility for their product and play a greater role in funding a recycling scheme by putting a levy on the cost of their globe.

JEFF ANGEL: Certainly the best way to fund the recycling process in a sustainable way is to put a levy because that gives you a constant flow of income which will support the collection facilities.

THEA DIKEOS: But the industry is awaiting the result of a trial in Victoria involving a voluntary take back scheme using a small number of lighting stores.

BRYAN DOUGLAS: We need to look at the results of this pilot program before we can come to any conclusion about whether we do it by a levy, whether the industry funds it in its entirety.

THEA DIKEOS: In a statement the Environment Minister Peter Garrett said the Government is investigating whether CFL’s should be treated as a national waste priority, and this will be discussed at a meeting of State environment ministers later in the year.

JEFF ANGEL: The point is that these lights are good for the environment when they’re being used, and they should do no harm to the environment when they’re being disposed.

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