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Press Contact: Sophie Cardona: (212) 361-2400, ext. 244 , or email cardona@informinc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, August 13, 2004
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FLUORESCENT LIGHTS: THE DANGER OVERHEAD
New Study by INFORM Pinpoints Fluorescent Lamps as Major Contributor to Human andEnvironmental Mercury Contamination

NEW YORK, NY, August 13, 2004: Fluorescent lights. Most homes and apartment buildings have
them. Virtually every office building uses them. They’re just up there, one of those everyday items we all
use and take for granted. Flip a switch, the lights come on and provide energy-efficient illumination. But
what most people don’t know is that these energy-saving lamps also have the potential to cause severe
harm to the environment and human health. Each and every one of those fluorescent lamps contains
mercury – a potent toxin that, if released to the environment through breakage or improper disposal, can
seriously harm humans, the environment, and, if women are pregnant, their unborn children.

13 Tons of Mercury Per Year, Just From Lamps
“Mercury from broken and discarded fluorescent lamps is a major contributor to widespread
mercury contamination of the environment,” said Cameron S. Lory, chief author of a new report,
Shedding Light on Mercury in Fluorescents: A Workbook for Design Professionals. “This year alone, 680
million lamps containing 13 tons of mercury will enter the US waste stream.”
The report, released today by INFORM, Inc., a national, nonprofit environmental research and
outreach organization, brings together information on the health and environmental effects of mercury
and on the release of mercury from broken and discarded lamps into the environment. INFORM’s work
provides the first systematic data on the mercury content of lighting in layperson’s terms, including the
lowest-mercury models that are commercially available and their manufacturers. As a result, millions of
Americans — from individual consumers to major corporations and government institutions — now have
the ability to choose lamps that contain the least amount of mercury possible while providing the
performance and energy efficiency they need.

Human Health and Political Action: 45 States Have Issued Fish Consumption Advisories and 29
States Have Passed Mercury Legislation
Lory noted that mercury is one of the chemicals of greatest concern to the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), along with lead, dioxins, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Mercury is a
particular threat, having reached such dangerous concentrations in fish, wildlife, and humans throughout
the US that 45 states have issued fish consumption advisories due to mercury contamination. In 15 states
— Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, New Hampshire,
New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont — these advisories apply to
100 percent of their lake acres and river miles.

Mercury in products such as fluorescent lamps also has increasingly become a target of state
legislation. Twenty-nine states now have laws on the books limiting mercury in everything from toys
(button batteries) to construction products (such as light switches), and setting restrictions on the disposal
of mercury-containing products. For example, just last month, New York’s Governor George Pataki
signed into law a measure banning mercury-containing toys and thermometers, mandating that
manufacturers disclose the mercury content of common consumer goods, and stipulating that mercurycontaining
products, including lamps, may not be disposed of as solid waste until the mercury is removed
and reused or recycled.

No Level of Mercury Considered Safe
“There is no safe level of mercury exposure for humans or the environment,” said Lory, who
explained that INFORM undertook the mercury-in-lighting work as part of its Green Building Program,
which looks for practical ways to improve and protect human health by identifying and promoting the use
of environmentally preferable products that result in the removal of hazardous chemicals from the
environment and the food chain. Mercury exposure can result in irreversible damage to the human
nervous, renal, and respiratory systems, warned Lory, so it s extremely important for consumers to
understand the dangers, treat fluorescents with care by disposing of them properly, and minimize the
amount of mercury in the lamps they use by purchasing the lowest-mercury alternatives.

INFORM Report Identifies Philips’ Alto Line as Lowest-Mercury Fluorescents on Market
INFORM’s report makes it easier for consumers to find low-mercury lamp alternatives. It details
the amount of mercury in commonly available fluorescents, and assesses which lamps have the lowest
mercury content. INFORM studied the fluorescent lamps made by the three largest manufacturers of
those products, General Electric, Sylvania, and Philips. INFORM’s research found Philips’ Alto line to be
the lowest-mercury alternative and an environmentally preferable choice for fluorescent lighting. The
Alto line contains only half the mercury of most functionally identical lamps.

“Offering Practical Steps to Take Is Key,” says INFORM President
“Fluorescent lights are just one of hundreds of everyday products that are made using mercury
and other highly toxic chemicals,” said INFORM Founder Joanna Underwood. “We need to identify
where these chemicals are and to systematically minimize their use and then replace them. Ferreting out
the practical steps consumers and others can take to make a difference is key,” she said. “Now, with this
manual, consumers have a resource to do just that with mercury.”

About INFORM:

INFORM is a national, nonprofit research and outreach organization that examines the effects of business practices, technologies, and products on the environment and human health.

For 30 years, INFORM has sought practical solutions to the environmental challenges ofsafeguarding ecosystems from toxic chemicals, shifting to pollution-free transportation, and
preventing solid waste. Combining groundbreaking research with strategic outreach, INFORM endeavors to turn findings into change. INFORM’s objective and constructive recommendations have helped guide members of government, industry, environmental groups, and communities
around the world in decisions promoting both economic and ecological sustainability.