Residents that have old fluorescent bulb hanging around the house don’t have to wait until OCRRA’s next Household Hazardous Waste Day to dispose of them properly! Now you can bring them to any of the following ACE and True Value Hardware stores where they will be recycled. OCRRA makes this free disposal option available to all households in the Onondaga County.

You might wonder what makes a light bulb so dangerous. Fluorescent lamps and Mercury Thermometers contain a small amount of an element called Mercury. Mercury is a toxic substance that accumulates in the environment when items containing Mercury are broken or thrown away. Mercury has been found in fish at levels of concern, resulting in fish consumption advisories throughout the State. Medical research has shown that exposure to unacceptable levels of mercury can cause neurological damage and attack your vital organs.

So, please, don’t trash your household fluorescent bulbs, bring them to a participating ACE or True Value Hardware store.

The following types of household lamps are acceptable:

• 4-foot fluorescent tubes (no 8-footers, will be accepted)
• Compact fluorescent bulbs  (CFLs, including spiral, globe, biax, and reflector type CFLs)
• U-Shaped and Circular fluorescent tubes

Households with High Intensity Metal Halide (HID), and mercury vapor lamps can dispose of them at OCRRA’s next Household Hazardous Waste Day. Reservations are required. Sign-up today.

OCRRA’s Executive Director Tom Rhoads says, “We are excited about this new opportunity to provide a convenient and earth-friendly solution for removing old fluorescent light bulbs from the waste stream. OCRRA regards the safe disposal of these lamps as an important step in keeping mercury-containing products out of the trash. OCRRA has budgeted funds to provide the participating stores with prepaid shipping boxes for the recycling of these old fluorescent lights. It costs residents nothing more than the gas to drive to their nearest participating store.”

This pilot program was created when the local Sierra Club asked OCRRA to explore options for more frequent collection of mercury containing lamps (fluorescent bulbs). In response, OCRRA sought the assistance of local hardware stores to make the process more convenient for residents. The old fluorescent lights dropped off by residents at the hardware stores will be shipped in the special prepaid kits to a firm where materials will be recycled, or disposed in an environmentally sound manner. Now residents have an easy and cost-free method of unloading old fluorescent lamps in a responsible manner.

Note: This program is limited to residents. Businesses can find alternate disposal locations on the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC’s) website. Other local business disposal options are also available. New York State environmental law severely limits disposal of fluorescent bulbs in the trash. It also bans the sale of mercury-added novelty products and mercury-fever thermometers in New York State and requires new labeling and proper disposal or recycling of mercury-added consumer products. The new law also prohibits primary and secondary schools from purchasing or using mercury. 

Partnering Hardware Stores

Partnering with OCRRA in this service are the following local hardware stores:

True Value Hardware Stores
Lafayette True Value, 2945 Route 11, Lafayette
Bob’s True Value, 4805 South Salina St., Syracuse
Nightingale True Value, Eastwood Plaza, Syracuse
Manlius True Value, 8225 Cazenovia Rd., Manlius
Wrightway True Value, 9236 Oswego Rd., Baldwinsville
Nightingale True Value, 4068 South Ave., Marcellus
City True Value, 214 South Geddes St., Syracuse

ACE Hardware Stores
Marcellus ACE Hardware, 15 North St., Marcellus
Village ACE Hardware, 204 S. Manlius St., Fayetteville
Village ACE Hardware, 43 E. Genesee St., Baldwinsville
Noble ACE Hardware, 237 E. Main St., Elbridge
Gravina Gardens & ACE, 4850 Buckley Rd., Liverpool
Suburban ACE Hardware, 7990 Oswego Rd., Liverpool
Salt City ACE Hardware, 325 Nottingham Rd., Syracuse

Additional local resources for managing fluorescent bulbs include: 

WW Grainger
315 433-2771
6285 E. Molloy Rd.
East Syracuse , NY 13057
www.grainger.com

Auburn Armature
800-333-0519 or 315 253-9721 
P.O. Box 870  
Auburn, NY 13021

Environmental Products and Services
315 451-6666
532 State Fair Blvd.
Syracuse, NY 13204

OCRRA does not endorse or recommend any of these companies, but rather provides their contact info in order to help you determine the best recycling solution for your business.

NYS Environmental Law

The State's law requires the following:

• Purchase and use of elemental mercury by primary and secondary schools is prohibited after September 4, 2004.
• Sales of mercury thermometers are restricted after January 1, 2005.
• Sales of toys or novelty products containing mercury are prohibited after January 1, 2005. (A product is not a mercury-added novelty solely on the basis that it is a game with a light screen display containing mercury, or includes an easily removable battery containing mercury.)
• A manufacturer that produces or sells mercury-added novelties shall notify retailers that sell mercury-added novelties about the product ban and inform them of how to properly dispose of the remaining inventory.
• Sales of elemental mercury, except for specific research, dental and manufacturing uses are limited after January 1, 2005.
• Products containing mercury must be labeled after July 12, 2005.
• Waste products containing mercury must not be incinerated after July 12, 2005.
• After July 12, 2005, waste products containing mercury must be managed separately from other solid waste. Fluorescent lamps from households and small businesses (100 or less employees and discarding 15 or less waste lamps per month) are exempt from these disposal restrictions.
• Recommendations on reducing mercury pollution in New York State will be made by an advisory committee appointed by the Governor and the State Legislature. The committee will be required to report on the extent and health effects of mercury contamination, methods and costs associated with reducing risks from mercury contamination and other related topics.

Three national companies, GE Lighting, Philips Lighting, and Osram Sylvania manufacture low mercury fluorescent lamps, compact fluorescents, and high pressure sodium lamps. These bulbs should be available through any local company that is a distributor of commercial lighting products.