Home » Natural Resources Articles » Groundbreaking State of Washington Legislation is First to Protect Workers and Consumers From Mercury Vapor Risks of Unsafe Fluorescent Lamp Packaging
Groundbreaking State of Washington Legislation is First to Protect Workers and Consumers From Mercury Vapor Risks of Unsafe Fluorescent Lamp Packaging
New legislation addresses the dangers of unsafe packaging and transportation of used fluorescent lamps and mercury containing devices to minimize mercury vapor risks. To protect workers and consumers, new law requires packaging to minimize the release of mercury into the environment.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN, April 21, 2010 /Natural Resources PR News/ -- When Governor Chris Gregoire signed Senate Bill 5543 on March 19, Washington became the first state to address the dangers of unsafe packaging and transportation of used fluorescent lamps and mercury-containing devices. This new legislation is set to be the precursor of future state and federal legislation as the awareness of mercury vapor dangers increases.
Due to deficiencies of most current packaging configurations utilized for shipping used fluorescent lamps, the new law requires that lights and other mercury-containing devices are packaged and shipped in material that will minimize the release of mercury into the environment. The law also states that packages should include mercury vapor barrier materials if lamps are transported by the United States postal service or a common carrier or collected via curbside programs and mail-back businesses.
Recent research studying the packaging employed to transport used fluorescent lamps has indicated the need for much stricter legislation to prevent the release of mercury vapor from used lamps. This research, published in the March 2009 issue of the Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, revealed the need for proven vapor containing packaging. The results indicated that four out of five commonly-used packages failed to minimize levels below acceptable occupational exposure limits, as defined by state and federal regulations and guidelines. For an abstract of the study and pdf download, go to this link: http://secure.awma.org/journal/Abstract.aspx?id=2051
Dr. Lisa M. Brosseau has conducted research and published in the areas of respiratory protection, aerosol exposures, hazardous materials and safety interventions in small businesses. She serves on the editorial review board of the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene and is currently the Vice Chair of ACGIH, a globally-recognized organization committed to developing scientific guidelines for workplace safety and health. For additional information, you may reach her at 612-624-3143 or brosseau@umn.edu.
Next Communications is a full service marketing communications firm specializing in print, online and search marketing. For further information, contact Dennis Gallaher at 952-934-8220 or dennis.g@nextcom.com or www.nextcom.com.
---
Press release service and press release distribution provided by http://www.24-7pressrelease.com |
|
|
Press Release Contact Information:
Dennis Gallaher
Next Communications
Pres
10249 Yellow Circle Drive
Minnetonka, MN
USA 55343
Voice: 952-934-8220
Fax: 952-934-2375
Website: Visit Our Website |
|
|
|
|
| NATURAL RESOURCES ARCHIVE SEARCH |
|
|
| |
| SUBMIT NATURAL RESOURCES NEWS |
|
|
| |
|
|
Advertise With Us |
About Us |
Contact Us