The latest news about Maine lakes and ponds.

Mercury Recycling Program Has Silver Lining: Store Credit of $5

January 21, 2009 - Some Maine hardware stores are offering $5 in store credit to anyone who brings in an old mercury thermostat, a device mounted on the walls of thousands of homes and businesses. Fifty-five stores have agreed to participate so far, although the state is still distributing collection bins and planning to expand the program.

The new program was a pleasant surprise for Mike Costin of Portland, who took a pair of old thermostats to Maine Hardware on St. John Street last week, hoping the store could recycle them. Costin knew the devices contained dangerous mercury and should be recycled, but he didn't know the store is among the first in Maine to hand out the new bounty.

"Just to have them take it and know that it's being properly taken care of, I thought that would be great," he said. "It's icing on the cake to get $5."

The program is part of the state's continuing quest to keep mercury from finding its way into Maine's air and water, where it contaminates fish and becomes a health threat to wildlife and people. The neurotoxin is the reason Maine's pregnant women, women of childbearing age and young children are advised to limit the amount of fish they eat.

If sent to a landfill or incinerator, items such as old thermostats and compact fluorescent bulbs can release small amounts of mercury, which accumulates over time.

The state Legislature has banned the sale of nearly every mercury-containing consumer product in Maine. New thermostats are mercury free, for example. The state also has set up a variety of recycling programs for the mercury-containing products already in homes and businesses.

Lawmakers will soon consider a new ban on the sale of mercury recoil suppressors – devices that can be mounted on firearms to reduce the force of the kickback when firing.

And they are expected to debate whether the makers of fluorescent bulbs should start paying the cost of the state's existing recycling effort.

Although energy-efficient fluorescent tubes and bulbs contain trace amounts of mercury, they're recommended by environmental regulators because they prevent more pollution than they cause, especially if they are recycled.

Hardware stores in Maine now collect the compact fluorescent bulbs at state expense. In addition to shifting the cost to manufacturers, the idea of offering a cash incentive for the bulbs, like the thermostats, also is expected to gain steam as more of them burn out and get thrown into the trash.

Maine was the first state to offer cash incentives to recycle old thermostats, although others are now planning similar programs.

The thermostats have to be intact, with the manufacturers' nameplates still on them, to get the reward. That's because each $5 bounty, plus the cost of collection, is paid for by the company that made the thermostat.

"There's a huge installed population of mercury thermostats" in the state, said John James, an environmental specialist with the state Department of Environmental Protection. "They're easy to collect. It's an easy way to keep hundreds of pounds out of the environment."

Maine's Legislature set a goal of recycling 125 pounds of thermostat mercury each year, and about 43 pounds were recycled in 2007, according to a DEP report.

Thermostats are the biggest source of mercury in most homes. Each contains three to four grams, while an old-fashioned fever thermometer has about half a gram.

Since 2006, contractors and technicians have been getting $5 rebates for mercury thermostats returned to wholesalers, although the checks were mailed later by the manufacturer.

The state's new program is designed for homeowners as well as technicians, and provides an immediate reward.

"We certainly would like to make the process a lot easier for a lot more people, and I think the retail program is going to be a great step toward that," said Ann Pistell, a DEP environmental specialist.

Costin said he took his two thermostats in for recycling last week after he switched to modern programmable thermostats, which also will cut his heating oil use. The $10 he earned paid for the de-icer he needed for his driveway.

"To do the right thing and get five bucks, who can complain about that?" he said.

Tim Currier, the manager at Maine Hardware, certainly isn't complaining.

The store had already been accepting compact fluorescent bulbs and rechargeable batteries as a service to customers. The $5 store credit for each thermostat means the retailer gets to share in the reward.

"One guy came in (earlier this month) and he had a whole bag of them. He gave me a dozen" and left with a bunch of gift certificates, Currier said. "I saw him back here on Saturday. He bought a whole bunch of tools."

Other participating stores include Sportsman True Value in Westbrook, Coastal Ace Hardware in Yarmouth and Aubuchon stores statewide. Pistell said a complete list will soon be posted at www.maine.gov/dep/mercury.

Monday January 19th, 2009

by John Richardson, staff writer
Portland Press Herald news story


Lakes:
Regions:


Print this story

Email this story

return to Lake News