| Are you a
candidate for Certified Facility Manager (CFM)? Hereis a sample question to test yourself
on…. Why should most flooring materials be at a facility at
least one day before they are required?
A) So they will be ready
when needed
B) So they can be inspected
C) To make sure the
full amount is delivered
D) To acclimate to the environment.
Read on to
find the answer. (See you
at September 9th luncheon!)
Recycling
Florescent Lamps
By J.R.
Howard
EPA says there's an estimated 1
billion fluoresent lamps discarded each year. The Association of Lighting
and Mercury Recyclers estimates only about 10 percent are recycled. The
typical 4-foot bulb contains about 30 milligrams of mercury. In the Federal Register, EPA says that florescent lamps will be treated as universal waste
as of 6 January 2000. Universal waste is hazardous waste that
is easily transported or stored without much risk. The rules
appear to change the cost of disposal very little for the
consumer. There may be some reduction in paper work for the
waste hauler. It does allow you to collect the material for
one year to make one big shipment. You will get a good price
break if you have 15,000 lamps to haul off. If you generate
less than 100 kilos of hazardous waste a month, you must follow the rules
in 40 CFR 261.5. ( I lent my copy to a friend).
One authority said that if you have a
bunch of lamps then you should recycle. That person’s bunch
was about 50. Although most small-businesses put them in the trash,
there are alternatives. Environment Light Recycling at
817.924.9381 will pick up quarterly in Austin for 8 cents a
foot. They provide 15” x15” boxes for you to collect the old
lamps in. Ladlaw at 249.6030 also provides a service.
Even better, why not install reduced
mercury lamps. The Light bulb Shop at 453.bulb sells a
Phillips 4-foot tube for $1.91 which is the same price as the regular
tube. Grainger sells GE T8s and T12s for a little
more. Although there is a reduction in lumens from 2800 to
2570, the color temperature and life appear to be the same.
The CRI drops from 86 to 78. The color rendition index may be
important to you, but green people can live with it.
An Environmental fact sheet from EPA.
For more information, contact the
TNRCC at 239.6412 or visit their site. If
you are really into recycling, then try Recycle-Texas, but you
won’t find anything on florescent lamps.
J.R. Howard is a
Facility Manager with FACS in Austin and serves on Communications
Committee as IFMA-Austin Web Master.
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