Fluorescent Light Bulb Information

New! Maine Compact Fluorescent Lamp Breakage Study Report

New! Report Regarding the Recycling of Fluorescent Lamps and Consumer Education Efforts - (209KB - pdf format) - Maine DEP and Maine Public Utilities Commission

Maine law does not allow fluorescent bulbs, including CFLs, to be disposed of in the trash because they contain a small amount of mercury. You can recycle intact bulbs at participating retail stores (MS Excel) (pdf format) at no charge or where your municipality has made lamp recycling arrangements (MS Excel) (pdf format) . There may be a small charge for recycling the bulb at a municipal recycling facility.

I've broken a fluorescent bulb in my home. What do I do?

We Recycle CFLs Here decal Efficiency Maine has launched a Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) Recycling Program. The decal at left will be in the windows of the participating retail stores (MS Excel) (pdf format)across the State of Maine. These stores are trained in accordance with Maine DEP requirements. The used, unbroken CFLs will be collected and recycled, with as many of the CFL components as possible recovered for reuse.

Energy Savings

According to the US Department of Energy, if we all switched our five most-highly used light bulbs to compact fluorescents, we would save enough electricity to shut down 21 power plants—about 800 billion kilowatt-hours. That means a lot less carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides going into the air and causing problems like climate change, acid rain, ozone and contaminated fish. Not to mention the money we’d save on our monthly electric bills. Try Efficiency Maine's savings calculator to see how much you might save. And find more information about the ENERGY STAR® Residential Lighting Program.

Proper recycling of fluorescent bulbs

Don't trash fluorescent light bulbs. Fluorescent light bulbs do contain a small amount of mercury and cannot be disposed of in the trash. Take them to a Universal Waste Collection Center or if intact, to one of the retail stores participating in the CFL collection program. Call 1-800-452-1942 for more information. To determine where your municipality has made arrangements for recycling of this type of waste, call your municipal office or check the Maine Department of Environmental Protection website for a list of municipal collection sites (MS Excel format) (pdf format) - The green blocks signify that we have gathered the information from those towns. White means we were not able to reach anyone in that municipal office. Blue means the facility will take from anyone in the state not just the residents in their town. Intact CFLs may also be recycled at no charge at many retail locations across the state, see list of participating retail stores. If anyone finds any errors or changes, please contact the Hazardous Waste Program staff at 207-287-2651.

More information

History and facts on CFL breakage in Prospect, Maine (MS Word format) (pdf format)

Updated April 9, 2008