Hi Folks,
MarineDepot.com and IceCap Inc. are partnering up to help increase awareness on the possible pollution that our hobby is adding to the environment. While this is just a start and there are many more initiatives to come, the Recycling program for old MH bulbs is a very impactful one to the environment.
• In America, one-in-six children born every year have been exposed to mercury levels so high that they are potentially at risk for learning disabilities, motor skill impairment and short-term memory loss.
• The Mercury from one fluorescent bulb can pollute 6,000 gallons of water beyond safe levels for drinking.
• 100 four-foot long fluorescent lamps contain about 4 grams of mercury. It only takes 1 teaspoon of mercury to contaminate a 20-acre lake FOREVER.
• In 1992, mercury-containing lamps were added to the United States' Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) list of hazardous substances. (The EPA's regulatory threshold of 2 mg./liter is usually exceeded by mercury-containing lamps).
• Mercury was number three on the 1997 list of hazardous substances as outlined by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the EPA.
• Each year, an estimated 600 million fluorescent lamps are disposed of in U.S. landfills amounting to 30,000 pounds of mercury waste.
• The Environmental Protection Agency reports that 187 incinerators nationwide emit approximately 70,000 total pounds of mercury into the environment each year.
• In the states of California, Minnesota, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin, it is unlawful for anyone to dispose of fluorescent bulbs as universal waste.
A Metal Halide bulb contains 5-7 times the amount of mercury of a florescent bulb. The impact is greater and we must do something about it now.
Bring in an old MH bulb and get a free Marine Depot T-shirt at RAP(while supplies last). Icecap representatives will also be there to answer any questions you may have on the recycling program or their products.
Thank you for your support. Hope to see you all at Reef A Palooza .
Ben
Director of Operations
www.marinedepot.com