July 2018 - Parks & Recreation - 81

soil or natural water features, and
ruin a facility's reputation.
The public looks to its parks as
the model of environmental stewardship. Many people actually
learn much of their best environmental habits from park leadership, so it becomes all the more
important to set the example and
properly handle fluorescent waste,
not to mention it is an integral part
of remaining EPA compliant.
Proper Disposal
Single parks and facilities using
a limited number of lamps might
consider boxing and storing them
until it is worthwhile to ship them
off for recycling. There are services,
like Lighting Resources, that sell
specially lined boxes that protect the
environment, should a lamp be accidentally broken. The agency simply
stores the used lamps in the box, until it's full and then return it, using
prepaid postage.
For towns and communities,
lamp recycling can be consolidated. Using a system like a BulbEater® drum-top crusher can make
recycling efficient and easy. According to Jake Vest, trades manager at the Village of Northbrook,
Illinois Park District, " We recycle
all of the bulbs from our facility as
well as the Village facilities. Residents can also drop bulbs off at the
Village of Northbrook and we recycle those as well. "
Once a 55-gallon drum is filled
with crushed bulbs, the user sets
up a hazardous-waste pickup with
a licensed handler, and in return,
gets a certificate of recycling that
fulfills EPA recordkeeping requirements. Bulbs are recycled
at certified processing facilities
where the mercury from the bulb,

as well as the aluminum fixtures,
glass tubing and other materials
are reclaimed for reuse.
The city of Naperville, Illinois,
has filled two drums of lamps
(approximately 1,350 bulbs, each)
since purchasing a BulbEater® two
years ago and hopes to change out
all its fluorescent lamps with LED
replacements, as the older lamps
burn out. Using the bulb crusher
has given the city the ability to
safely coordinate the retrofit and
keep its storage space footprint
well-managed.
When considering the disposal of
large lamps, like high-pressure sodium lamps used to illuminate sports
fields, PalletPak Recycling Kit programs offer a safe way to recycle
bulkier fixtures and reflector lamps.
With environmentally sound
practices on so many people's
mind, it is important for park systems to be aware of the safe, proper way to dispose of their lamps.
Box and store, shipping or crush-

Box and store, shipping or
crushing bulbs are three
options for disposing of used
CFLs, linear bulbs and highdensity lamps.
ing bulbs are three options for disposing of used CFLs, linear bulbs
and high-density lamps. Choosing
to work with a reputable hazardous-waste handling partner, like
TerraCycle® that can provide documented proof of responsible recycling will give your organization
the peace of mind that comes with
operating professionally.

For more information, check out https://www.
epa.gov/cfl/recycling-and-disposal-cfls-andother-bulbs-contain-mercury#important and
https://www.aircycle.com/bulb-eater-3/.
Bobby Farris is the General Manager for TerraCycle
Regulated Waste (bobby.farris@terracycle.com).

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Parks & Recreation

July 2018 - Parks & Recreation

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