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Mercury-Containing Light Bulb (Lamp) Recycling
What Is Universal Waste?
This Web site is intended to increase awareness, provide resource tools, information to users, and to encourage the recycling of all mercury-containing light bulbs, including compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) after they burn out. EPA is working with manufacturers and major U.S. retailers to develop, implement or expand recycling options. Household hazardous waste collection facilities usually accept these lamps. You can find more information about these collection and/or recycling programs at Where You Live or at Earth911.org. 
Households and consumers can contact their state or local environmental regulatory agency for information about proper disposal options such as disposal in your household garbage if no other options are available. If your state or local environmental regulatory agency offers no other disposal options except your household garbage, place the fluorescent light bulb in two plastic bags and seal it before putting it into the outside trash, or other protected outside location, for the next normal trash collection.
- Basic Information - Learn the basics of recycling and otherwise disposing of mercury-containing light bulbs in compliance with federal and state rules.
- Where You Live - Find information about household hazardous waste collection and/or recycling programs.
- Frequent Questions - Find questions and answers about lamp disposal, proper handling, and other issues.
- Proper Management: Businesses and Households can discover how to store, transport and recycle or otherwise dispose of mercury-containing light bulbs.
- Regulatory Framework - Review a brief history of fluorescent lamp regulation and view regulatory documents.
- Outreach - Learn about EPA partnerships and activities to increase mercury-containing lamp recycling.
- Resources - View publications and links to Web sites that provide information on mercury-containing lamp recycling.
- Mercury Lamp Drum-Top Crusher Study - Learn about the results of EPA's 2006 study on the performance of mercury lamp drum-top crusher (DTC) devices.
- Treatment Standards for Mercury-Containing Debris - If you are a commercial handler of lamps, find out if EPA also considers your mercury-containing waste to be contaminated debris, which is subject to separate treatment standards.
